A  REPORT 

ON 

VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

IN  CHICAGO 
AND  IN  OTHER  CITIES 


BY 
A  COMMITTEE 

OF  THE 

CITV  CLUB  OF  CHICAGO 


niversity  of  California] 
Southern  Regional 
Library  Facility 


Compliments  of  the 

€ity  Club  of  Chicago 


A  REPORT 

ON 

VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

IN  CHICAGO 

AND    IN    OTHER    CITIES 


An  analysis  of  the  need  for  industrial  and  commercial  training  in  Chicago,  and  a  study 
of  present  provisions  therefor  in  comparison  with  such  provisions  in  twenty- 
nine  other  cities,   together   with    recommendations   as   to   the 
best  form  in  which  such  training  may  be  given  in 
the    public   school    system    of    Chicago 


A    SUB-COMMITTEE 

OF   THE 

COMMITTEE    ON    PUBLIC    EDUCATION,   1910-1911 

OF    THE 

CITY   CLUB   OF    CHICAGO 


Ernest  A.  Wreidt 
William  J.  Bogan 
George  H".  Mead,  Chairman 

Sub-Committee 


CITY  CLUB  OF  CHICAGO 

1912 


Copyright,  1912, 
By  City  Club  of  Chicago. 


THE  ilENRT  0.  SHEPARD  CO.,  PRINTERS,  CHICAGO. 


Published  by  Authority  of  the  Directors  of  the 
City  Club  of  Chicago. 

Chicago.  February  23,  191 2. 


2066069 


To  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  City  Club  of  Chicago: 

Gentlemen, —  The  subjoined  report  has  been  in  process  of 
growth  since  the  latter  part  of  1909.  The  committee  of  the  club 
on  Public  Education  for  1909-10  presented  to  the  directors  of  the 
club,  in  November,  1909,  a  plan  for  the  study  of  the  needs  for  indus- 
trial and  commercial  training  in  Chicago,  of  the  actual  training  which 
is  given  there,  and  especially  of  the  industrial  and  commercial  train- 
ing which  is  given  elsewhere  in  the  country.  The  plan  was  presented 
by  the  board  to  Mrs.  Emmons  Blaine,  whose  generosity  made  it  pos- 
sible to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  investigation.  Air.  Ernest  A. 
Wreidt  undertook  for  the  committee  a  detailed  study  of  the  problem 
of  industrial  training  in  Chicago  and  elsewhere  in  the  country.  The 
committee  secured  the  services  for  a  few  months  of  Mr.  Walter  C. 
Campbell  to  study  the  problem  of  commercial  training  in  Chicago, 
and  the  commercial  schools  and  courses  in  Boston,  Cleveland  and 
St.  Louis.  At  the  suggestion  of  the  committee,  Mr.  Irving  M. 
Ristine  made  an  intensive  study  of  the  results  of  the  schooling  of  a 
number  of  boys  engaged  in  Chicago's  industries,  who  had  left  school 
at  different  grades  from  the  fifth  up.  These  three  gentlemen  were 
engaged  in  research  in  education  in  the  graduate  school  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Chicago,  and  at  certain  points  were  given  advice  and  sug- 
gestions by  members  of  the  faculty  of  the  Department  of  Education 
of  the  University,  for  which  we  wish  to  express  our  great  apprecia- 
tion. 

When  this  material  had  been  gathered  it  was  turned  over  by  the 
club  Committee  on  Public  Education  for  1910-11  to  a  sub-committee 
consisting  of  Mr.  Wreidt,  who  had  in  the  meantime  become  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Committee  on  Public  Education,  Mr.  William  J.  Bogan, 
principal  of  the  Lane  Technical  High  School,  and  Mr.  George  H. 
Mead,  the  chairman  of  the  committee.  This  sub-committee  has  been 
occupied  up  to  the  present  time  in  formulating  its  recommendations 
and  in  putting  the  material  in  form  for  submission  to  your  body. 
These  recommendations  were  presented  in  outline  by  the  sub-com- 
mittee to  the  Committee  on  Public  Education  in  June,  1911.  ami 
were  approved  by  that  committee.     Beyond  this  the  responsibility 


for  the  report  rests  upon  the  sub-committee.  The  report  has  not 
been  considered  by  the  committee  of  the  club  on  Public  Education 
for  1911-12. 

We  desire  in  presenting  this  report  to  express  our  own  great 
appreciation  of  Airs.  Emmons  Blaine's  intelligent  interest  and  gen- 
erosity, also  our  appreciation  of  the  cordial  cooperation  of  the  Chi- 
cago Association  of  Commerce  with  the  sub-committee  in  investigat- 
ing the  conditions  and  needs  of  industrial  training  in  Chicago.  The 
Education  Committee  of  that  association  recommended  such  cooper- 
ation to  the  Executive  Committee  of  that  body,  and  that  committee 
gave  the  sub-committee  assistance  of  the  most  valuable  kind,  furnish- 
ing letters  signed  by  their  president,  the  chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  and  the  general  secretary,  to  all  the  chairmen  of  their 
subdivisions,  thus  facilitating  approach  to  the  different  houses  and 
manufacturing  establishments  in  Chicago.  We  wish  to  express  our 
great  appreciation  of  the  ready  cooperation  of  the  Committee  on 
Schools  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor,  who  turned  over  to  us 
the  replies  made  by  the  unions  comprised  in  the  Federation  of  Labor, 
to  the  questionnaire  which  is  quoted  in  our  report.  We  desire, 
finally,  to  express  our  great  appreciation  of  the  frequent  assistance 
given  us  by  Mrs.  Young,  Superintendent  of  Education  in  Chicago, 
and  by  others  in  the  office  of  the  Superintendent  of  Education. 

With  this  preface,  we  respectfully  present  to  you  the  following 
report  on  Vocational  Training  in  Chicago  and  in  other  cities. 

Ernest  A.  Wreidt, 
William  J.  Bogan, 
George  H.  Mead,  chairman, 
Sub-committee. 
March  12,  1912. 


PART  I 

INTRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  I.     GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS 

PAGE 

A.  General  Summary  l 

B.  Recommendations   12 

1.  Two-year  Elementary  Vocational  Schools 15 

2.  Elementary  Industrial  Schools  for  Over-age  Children  Below 

Grade  Seven   21 

3.  Optional  Industrial  and  Commercial  Courses  in  Grades  Seven 

and  Eight  21 

4.  Trade  School  for  Boys 23 

5.  Trade  School  for  Girls 24 

6.  Apprentice  Schools   24 

7.  State  Legislation  for  Day  Continuation  Schools 24 

8.  Cooperation    with    Employers   to    Secure    Day   Continuation 

Schools    24 

0.     Legislation  to  Raise  the  Compulsory  Age  Limit 25 

10.  Technical  and  Trade  Courses  in  the  High  School 25 

11.  Cooperative  Courses  in  the  Technical  High  School 20 

12.  Industrial  Courses  for  Girls  in  the  High  School 27 

13.  Central  High  School  of  Commerce 27 

14.  Present  Commercial  Courses  in  the  High  School 27 


PART  II 

INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION  IN  CHICAGO  AND  IN 
OTHER  CITIES 

CHAPTER   II.     THE   NEED   OF  CHICAGO   SCHOOLS   FOR   INDUS- 
TRIAL EDUCATION 

Manual  Training  and  Industrial  Training 28 

Elimination  of  Pupils 

The  "  Wasted  Years,"  Fourteen  to  Sixteen 

Conclusions    39 

CHAPTER  III.     CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED   INDUSTRIES  OF 
CHICAGO  AND  THE  ATTITUDE  OF  EMPLOYERS 42 

Method  of  Obtaining  Reports 44 

General  Sum marv   45 


viii  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

PAGE 

The  Detailed  Results 48 

Recapitulation   64 

Comments  of  Individual  Employers 65 

Analysis  of  the  Com  ments  of  Individual  Employers 72 


CHAPTER  IV.     ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR  IN   CHICAGO 

AXD   IN  OTHER  CITIES 73 

Attitude  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor 74 

Attitude  of  Skilled  Workmen 76 

Comments  of  Individual  Unions 77 

Attitude  of  Labor  Leaders  in  Chicago 80 

The  American  Federation  of  Labor 82 

CHAPTER  V.     INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND   COURSES   IN 

CHICAGO 

I.     Public  Industrial  Schools  and  Courses 

High  Schools  83 

1.  The  Technical  High  Schools 83 

2.  The  Revised  Curriculum  84 

The  Four-year  Vocational  Courses 85 

3.  The  Two-year  Vocational  Courses 93 

4.  The  Two-year  Technical  College  Course 100 

5.  The  Flower  Technical  High  School  for  Girls 102 

Elementary  Schools  104 

1.  The  Farragut  Elementary  School 104 

2.  The  Elementary  Industrial  Course 108 

Continuation  Schools   Ill 

1.  The  Apprentice  Schools   Ill 

The    Continuation    School    for    Building   Trade    Workers    in 

Munich,  Germany   119 

2.  Evening  Continuation  Classes 127 

3.  Further  Provisions  for  Day  Continuation  Classes 127 

4.  State  Legislation    130 

II.    A  Comparison  with  Other  Cities 

Chicago  131 

Boston,  Massachusetts  131 

Newton,  Massachusetts  133 

Cleveland,  Ohio   133 

Cincinnati,  Ohio   135 

New  York,  New  York 136 

Sum  mary    137 


TABLE  OF  COX  TEXTS  ix 

III.    Private  Industrial  Schi 

PAGE 

1.  The  Lewis  Institute  Co-operative  Course L37 

2.  The  Day  and  Evening  Classes  of  the  Young   Men's   Christian- 

Association   140 

.3.     The  Inland  Printer  Correspondence  Course  in  Printing,  Under  the 

Direction  of  the  International  Typographical  Union ill 

4.  Factory   Apprentice   Schools 141 

(1)  The  Western  Electric  Company 142 

(2)  The  McCormick  Works 142 

(3)  The  School  for  Apprentices  of  the  Lakeside  Press 142 

5.  The  Coyne  National  Trade  School 142 

6.  The  Chicago  Technical  College 143 

CHAPTER  VI.     INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 

CITIES 

General  Impressions 

The  Importance  of  Intermediate  Schools 144 

Factory  Apprentice  Schools 147 

Attitude  of  Trade  Unions 14S 

Co-operative  Courses  149 

"  Industrialized  "   Shopwork   1 5 1 

Related  Academic  Work  and  Drawing 153 

Qualifications  of  Teachers L55 

Separate  Buildings  for  Industrial  Courses 1.56 

Industrial  Education  for  Girls 15? 

CHAPTER  VII.    INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 

CITIES  —  Continued 

Detailed  Descriptic\> 
I.     Industrial  Schools  and  Courses  Classified  as  to  Types L61 

1.  Optional    Industrial   Courses  in   Grammar   School   Not   Inter- 

fering with  Regular  Graduation 

1.  In  Menomonie,   Wisconsin    162 

2.  In  Fitcheurg,  Massachusetts  164 

3.  In  Boston,  Massachusetts   1 66 

4.  In  the  Washington-Allston  Elementary  School,  Boston.  Mas- 

sachusetts       167 

5.  In  New  York  City L68 

2.  Grammar  Schools  and  Optional  Courses  —  Abandoning  Regu- 

lar Graduation 

1.     The  Elementary  Industrial  School,  Cleveland,  Ohio 168 


x  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

PAGE 

2.  North  Bennet  Street  Industrial  School,  Boston,  Massachusetts  169 

3.  Two  Elementary  Schools,  Boston,  Massachusetts 170 

3.  Preparatory  Trade  Schools 

1.  The  Factory  School,  Rochester,  New  York 170 

2.  The  Vocational  School,  Albany,  New  York 173 

3.  The  Vocational  and  Trade  Schools,  Yonkers,  New  York 177 

4.  School  Number  100,  New  York  City 177 

5.  The  Independent  Industrial  School,  Newton,  Massachusetts 177 

G.  A  Preparatory  Trade  School,  Columbus,  Ohio 179 

7.  Hebrew  Technical  Institute,  for  Boys,  New  York  City 179 

8.  The  Industrial  School,  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts 179 

9.  The  Vocational  School,  Springfield,  Massachusetts 180 

10.  The  Pre-apprentice  School  of  Printing  and  Bookbinding,  Boston, 

Massachusetts    1S1 

4.  Trade  Schools 

A.  Under  Public  Auspices 

1.  The  School  of  Trades  for  Boys,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin 182 

2.  ■  The  Trade  School,  Worcester,  Massachusetts 183 

3.  The  Philadelphia  Trades  Schools 185 

4.  The  Trade  School  for  Machinists,  Saginaw,  Michigan 185 

5.  The  Manhattan  Trade  School  for  Girls,  New  York  City 186 

6.  The  Trade  School  for  Girls,  Boston,  Massachusetts 1S7 

7.  The  Milwaukee  Trade  School  for  Girls 189 

B.  Under  Private  Auspices 

1.  The  Hebrew  Technical  School  for  Girls,  New  York  City 189 

2.  The  Williamson  Free  School  of  Mechanical  Trades,  William- 

son School,  Pennsylvania 190 

3.  The  School  for  Apprentices  and  Journeymen,  Carnegie  Techni- 

cal Schools,  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania 190 

4.  The  National  Trade  Schools  and  Technical  Institute,  Indian- 

apolis,  Indiana   191 

5.  The  School  of  Printing,  North  End  Union,  Boston,  Massachu- 

setts      192 

6.  The  Short-course  Trade  School 192 

7.  The  Baron  de  Hirsch  Trade  School,  New  York  City 193 

8.  The  New  York  Trade  School,  New  York  City 193 

5.  Technical  and  Trade  Courses  in  High  Schools 

1.  The  Technical  High  School,  Cleveland,  Ohio.  ." 193 

2.  The  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls,  Boston,  Massa- 

chusetts      194 

3.  The  Boys'  Industrial  Course  and  the  Girls'  Industrial  Course, 

Cincinnati,    Ohio    195 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS  xi 

PAGE 

4.  The  Technical  High  School,  Newton,  Massai  husetts 

5.  The  Technical  High  School,  Springfield,  Massachusetts 198 

6.  Afternoon  Industrial  Classes,  Boston,  Massa<  husetts 199 

7.  The  High  School,  Menomonie,  Wisconsin 199 

8.  The  High  School,  Muskegon,  Michigan 1 99 

G.     Cooperative  Schools  and  Courses 

A.  Day  Continuation  Schools 

1.  The  Day  Continuation  School,  Cincinnati,  Ohio 200 

2.  Day  Continuation  Classes,  Boston,  Massachusetts 201 

3.  The  School  of  Salesmanship  for  Girls,  Boston,  M  setts.  203 

4.  Continuation    Schools    for    Unskilled   Workers,    Munich,    Ger- 

many       204 

B.  Alternate-week  Courses 

1.  The  Beverly  Industrial  School,  Beverly,  Massachusetts 2d7 

2.  The  Co-operative  Course,  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts 

II.    Separate  High  Schools  for  Technical  and  Manual  Training  Cou 

1.  In  St.  Louis,  Missouri  209 

2.  In  Chicago,  Illinois  209 

3.  In  Cleveland,  Ohio 209 

4.  In  Boston,  Massachusetts 209 

5.  In  Newton,  Massachusetts 210 

6.  In  New  York,  New  York 210 

7.  In  Cincinnati,  Ohio 210 

CHAPTER  VIII.   INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 

CITIES  —  Concluded 

Shop  Methods.     Academic  Courses  and  Drawing.     Wages  of  Former 

Students 

I.     Industrial  Methods  in  Shopwork 212 

1.  In  the  Industrial  Courses,  Boston,  Massachusetts 213 

2.  In  the  Industrial  School,  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts 214 

II.    Drawing  and  Academic  Courses  Related  to  Industrial  Needs. 

Mathematics  213 

1.  Shop  Mathematics  215 

2.  A  book  of  problems,  Lewis  Institute,  Chicago 216 

3.  Shop  Problems  in  Mathematics 216 

4.  In  the  Cleveland  Technical  High  School 217 

5.  In  the  Manhattan  Trade  School  for  Girls,  New  York  City 217 

(5.     In  the  Milwaukee  School  of  Trades,  ami  in  the  Cincinnati  Con- 
tinuation School  217 

7.     In  the  Apprentice  Schools  of  the  New  York  Central  Lines 21  8 


xii  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

PAGE 

Drawing    218 

1.  In  the  Apprentice  Schools  of  the  New  York  Central  Lines 21S 

2.  In  the  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls,  Boston,  Massachu- 

setts       21S 

History    218 

1.  History  of  Boot  and  Shoe  Making  in  the  High  School,  Brockton, 

Massachusetts    218 

2.  History  of  Printing,   Pre-apprentice  School  of  Printing,   Boston, 

Massachusetts    221 

3.  In  the  Cooperative  Course  of  the  Lewis  Institute,  Chicago,  Illinois  221 

4.  Industrial    History   and    Civics    in    the    Continuation    Schools    of 

Munich,  Germany    222 

Geography-history   224 

1.     In  the  Cleveland  Elementary  Industrial  School 224 

Science    227 

1.  Industrial  Chemistry  in  the  High  School,  Menomonie,  Wisconsin.  227 

2.  Physics  in  the  Technical  High  School,  Cleveland,  Ohio 22S 

Reference  and  Text  Books 230 

III.    Wages  of  Students  from  Trade  and  Technical  Schools 2ni 


PART  III 

COMMERCIAL  EDUCATION  IN  CHICAGO  AND  IN 
OTHER  CITIES 

CHAPTER  IX.     SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS.     SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER 
CITIES    238 

Commercial  Courses  in  Public  High  Schools  of  Chicago 239 

Private  Commercial  Schools  in  Chicago 240 

Commercial  Courses  in  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  of 

Chicago    242 

Summary  of   Conditions 243 

Remedies    244 

The  Boston  High  School  of  Commerce 245 

The  Cleveland  High  School  of  Commerce 247 

Com  mercial  Courses  in  St.  Louis  High  Schools 24S 

Commercial  Courses  in  Cincinnati  High  Schools 250 

CHAPTER   X.     SOLICITATION    BY    PRIVATE    COMMERCIAL 
SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO 

Extent  of  This  Evil 251 

What  the  Solicitors  Are  Doing 252 

Statements  Made  by  High-school  Teachers -:,:; 

Testimony  from  Pupils  in  the  First  Year  of  High  School 253 

Testimony  from  Pupils  in  the  Fourth  Year  of  IIigh  School 255 

What  the  Proprietors  Say   255 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS  xiii 

The  Cost  of  Solicitation 256 

The  Cost  of  Tuition 256 

CHAPTER  XI.     ATTITUDE  OF  BUSINESS  MEN _ 

CHAPTER    XII.      VIEWS    OF    TEACHERS    OF    COMMERCIAL 
SUBJECTS   IN   CHICAGO  HIGH   SCHOOLS 2G6 

CHAPTER  XIII.     REASONS  GIVEN  BY  PUPILS  FOR  LEAVING 
SCHOOL    2G0 


PART  IV 

EDUCATIONAL  TESTS  GIVEN  TO  BOYS  WHO  HAD 
LEFT  SCHOOL  FOR  WORK 

CHAPTER  XIV.     PURPOSE,  METHODS  AND   GEXKRAL  RESULTS 

The  Tests  Used   272 

The  Methods  of  Conducting  the  Tests 27:; 

The  Difficulty  of  Securing  Boys 273 

The  Successful  Lines  of  Approach 274 

Method  of  Grading 27o 

Summary  of  Results   277 

CHAPTER  XV.     THE  TEST  IX  ARITHMETIC 27^ 

CHAPTER  XVI.    THE  TEST  IX  ENGLISH I 

Methods  of  Grading  English 2 

The  Results  of  the  English  Test 296 

CHAPTER   XVII.     THE   TEST   IN    CIVIL   GOVERXMEXT    AND 
HISTORY    . 

CHAPTER  XVIII.     PRESEXT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIOXS. . .  304 


REPORT   ON   VOCATIONAL 
TRAINING 


PART  I 
INTRODUCTION 


CHAPTER    I 

GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND   RECOMMENDATIONS 

A.     GENERAL    SUMMARY 

By 

GEORGE  H.  MEAD 

Chairman  of  the  Sub-committee 


In  Chicago,  as  in  other  cities  in  America,  only  a  little  over  one- 
half  of  the  children  complete  the  elementary  course.  Forty-three  per 
cent  of  those  who  enter  the  first  grade  do  not  reach  the  eighth  grade 
at  all,  and  49  per  cent  do  not  complete  the  eighth  grade  [p.  29  ff]. 
Under  what  the  school  considers  normal  conditions  children  enter 
the  first  grade  at  the  age  of  seven,  the  second  at  the  age  of  eight, 
third  at  nine,  fourth  at  ten,  fifth  at  eleven,  sixth  at  twelve,  seventh 
at  thirteen,  and  the  eighth  at  fourteen.  The  State  laws  keep  children 
in  school  up  to  the  age  of  fourteen.  Thus  the  normal  child  may  not 
leave  school  until  he  has  completed  the  eight  grades  of  the  elemen- 
tary school.  We  find  expressed  in  the  age  of  entrance  coupled  with 
yearly  promotions,  and  in  the  State  compulsory  education  law,  the 
judgment  of  educators  and  legislators  that  the  normal  child  should 
complete  the  eight  elementary  grades  before  he  leaves  school.  The 
school  curriculum  implies  as  much.  By  the  end  of  the  sixth  grade 
children  have  become  acquainted  with  the  principal  operations  in 
arithmetic,  and  have  been  trained  in  the  simple  use  of  English.  Dur- 
ing the  seventh  and  eighth  grades  they  are  trained  in  the  application 
of  these  principles  of  number  and  language  and  gain  some  hold  upon 
American  History,  some  knowledge  of  the  city  in  which  they  live, 
besides  a  little  elementary  science.  It  has  been  generally  maintained 
that  unless  the  child  completes  this  entire  course  he  is  unable  to 
retain  what  he  has  acquired.  Our  investigator's  report  [p.  872  ft] 
2 


2  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

is  decisive  upon  this  for  the  boys  whom  he  was  able  to  examine. 
These  boys  had  dropped  out  of  school  at  all  grades  from  the  fifth 
up.  A  number  were  twenty  years  old  and  more.  Still  a  simple 
fifth  grade  examination  in  arithmetic  and  English  revealed  the  fact 
that  those  who  had  left  school  before  completing  the  eighth  grade 
had  lost  most  that  they  had  learned  in  school,  though  the  study  of 
their  papers  showed  that  those  who  remained  longer  retained  rela- 
tively more.  Every  added  year  in  school  meant  a  little  more  hold 
upon  what  had  been  once  learned,  but  the  whole  elementary  period 
was  necessary  to  make  even  the  work  of  earlier  grades  a  permanent 
acquisition. 

In  this  study  we  have  then  evidence  given  by  Chicago  boys,  who 
left  school  to  go  to  work  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen 
before  completing  the  elementary  school.  This  evidence  from  our 
own  children  confirms  the  accepted  judgment  of  legislators  and  edu- 
cators that  our  schools  can  not  give  the  minimum  education  for 
American  citizenship  in  less  than  the  eight  grades.  It  is  this  con- 
clusion that  gives  serious  meaning  to  elimination  statistics.  If  43 
per  cent  of  our  children  never  reach  the  eighth  grade  and  49  per 
cent  never  complete  it,  we  must  confess  that  nearly  half  our  chil- 
dren fail  to  get  the  minimum  education  contemplated  by  our  laws, 
and  to  a  great  degree,  fail  to  hold  on  to  what  they  do  get  in  the 
schools,  and  that  thus  our  school  system  operates  at  a  serious  dis- 
advantage, since  a  large  part  of  its  training  of  intelligence  is 
inevitably  lost.  Consider  these  figures  from  the  standpoint  of  effi- 
ciency of  operation :  of  the  43  per  cent  of  our  school  children  who 
never  reach  the  eighth  grade,  a  fourth,  or  11  per  cent  of  all  the  chil- 
dren in  the  schools,  do  not  reach  even  the  sixth  grade ;  nearly  one- 
third  of  these  43  per  cent,  or  16  per  cent  of  all,  drop  out  in  the  sixth, 
and  another  third  in  the  seventh  grade  [p.  29  ff].  Just  because  we 
recognize  the  solidarity  and  articulation  of  our  elementary  school, 
we  must  recognize  that  these  figures  measure  unquestioned  waste 
in  operation  of  the  public  school.  They  measure  not  alone  the  loss 
of  what  the  children  might  have  learned  had  they  remained  in 
school,  but  the  loss  even  of  a  great  part  of  what  they  have  learned ; 
in  a  word,  the  loss  of  that  organic  whole  —  an  elementary  school 
training.  This  conclusion  brings  us  face  to  face  with  the  statistics 
of  "  retardation  "  or  more  correctly  "  over-age  "  in  the  elementary 
school.  Any  child  who  enters  the  first  grade  after  his  eighth  birth- 
day or  who  is  not  promoted  a  grade  each  year  is  termed  a  retarded 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  3 

child.  The  term  is  ambiguous.  Its  implication  in  the  minds  of 
many  is  apt  to  be  backwardness  in  intelligence  or  defect  in  character. 
This  implication  is  not  justified  by  the  fact  of  late  entrance  nor 
always  by  failure  in  promotion.  Many  over-hasty  generalizations 
have  been  drawn  from  retardation  statistics.  One  conclusion  is, 
however,  beyond  cavil.  Any  child  who  enters  a  year  late  or  repeats 
a  year  —  i.  e.  any  over-age  child  —  is  free  to  leave  school  before 
he  has  completed  the  elementary  curriculum.  The  principal  purpose 
of  the  compulsory  education  statute  is  thwarted  by  over-age  or 
retardation  in  our  elementary  schools.  There  are  approximately 
70,000  retarded  children  in  the  Chicago  elementary  schools  —  or 
one-third  of  all  the  school  children  [p.  31].  There  are  nearly 
15  per  cent  over-age  children  in  the  first  grade  and  the  percentage 
increases  steadily  in  the  succeeding  grades  up  to  nearly  47  per  cent 
in  the  fifth  grade.  It  then  falls  off  uniformly  up  to  the  end  of  the 
eighth  grade.  The  explanation  of  the  drop  in  the  curve  of  retarda- 
tion is  that  large  numbers  of  over-age  children  in  the  fifth  and  sixth 
grades  have  reached  the  age  of  fourteen,  have  obtained  the  age  and 
school  certificates,  and  have  left  school  with  no  fear  of  the  truant 
officer.  Retardation  makes  for  elimination  and  elimination  spells 
defective  education. 

Measures  which  reduce  retardation  or  over-age  in  the  elementary 
schools  must  reduce  elimination  and  must  therefore  bring  the  schools 
nearer  to  the  goal  of  giving  an  effective  common  school  education 
to  all  the  children  in  the  city.  Certain  recommendations  made  in 
this  report  have  this  reduction  of  the  over-age  percentage  in  the 
schools  directly  in  view  [p.  21].  On  the  other  hand  we  can  not 
expect  to  meet  the  loss  involved  in  elimination  by  reducing  the  over- 
age percentage  to  zero.  An  inference,  that  can  be  safely  drawn 
from  the  over-age  of  a  third  of  the  whole  number  of  elementary 
school  children,  is  that  the  two  periods,  the  fourteen-year  compul- 
sory education  period,  and  the  eight-grade  period,  do  not  actually 
correspond.  The  curriculum  of  the  elementary  school  can  not  be 
covered  in  eight  grades  by  a  large  proportion  of  our  children.  If, 
then,  they  are  to  complete  their  elementary  schooling  they  must  do 
this  after  they  have  passed  the  age  of  fourteen  and  out  of  the  juris- 
diction of  the  truant  officer. 

In  a  very  real  sense  a  boy  or  girl,  especially  a  boy,  over  fourteen 
years  of  age  does  not  fit  into  our  elementary  school  curriculum  as 
that   curriculum   is   at  present  constructed,   even    with    its   manual 


4  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

training  and  household  arts.  No  better  evidence  for  this  can  be 
offered  than  the  large  numbers  who  leave  school  as  soon  as  the 
fourteen  years  compulsory  period  is  passed.  This  evidence  comes 
of  course  not  from  Chicago  alone.  The  investigations  in  Massachu- 
setts1 and  St.  Louis1  as  well  as  in  other  communities,  have  revealed 
the  same  large  percentage  who  leave  school  as  soon  as  the  fourteen- 
year  period  is  reached.  These  investigations  have  shown  conclu- 
sively that  the  prevailing  reason  for  leaving  school  is  not  to  be  found 
in  the  financial  need  of  the  family  of  the  fourteen-year  old  child. 
The  child's  own  lack  of  interest  in  the  school  as  well  as  that  of  his 
parents  is  the  unquestioned  reason  for  the  largest  part  of  the  elimina- 
tion in  our  elementary  schools.  Other  investigations  have  been  so 
conclusive  on  this  point  that  this  committee  has  not  felt  that  we 
needed  to  undertake  a  special  study  of  the  motives  of  Chicago  chil- 
dren for  dropping  out  of  school  as  soon  as  the  law  permits,  or  those 
of  their  parents  in  allowing  this  elimination. 

Our  elementary  school  curriculum  undertakes  more  than  can  be 
accomplished  by  a  large  percentage  of  the  children  during  the  period 
of  eight  school  years.  The  over-age  of  one-third  of  the  children 
is  convincing  evidence  that  they  can  not  complete  this  curriculum 
inside  of  the  time  during  which  the  law  keeps  them  in  school ;  and 
neither  the  interest  of  the  child  nor  that  of  his  parents  keeps  him 
there  when  the  law  has  withdrawn  its  hand. 

It  would  be  possible  to  meet  this  situation  by  restricting  the  cur- 
riculum, and  increasing  the  school  time.  A  curriculum  shorter  than 
that  of  the  American  elementary  schools,  and  longer  school  sessions. 
are  found  in  the  elementary  schools  of  Berlin,  Germany.  Still 
retardation  and  elimination  seem  to  be  as  high  there2  as  in  Chicago, 
and  the  situation  in  the  Berlin  schools  is  typical  of  that  in  the  Ger- 

1  We  have  not  overlooked  the  fact  that  Chicago's  laboring  class  is  predominately 
unskilled  and  consequently  lives  on  the  lowest  wages,  and  that  the  family's  demand  for 
children's  wages  in  certain  localities  of  Chicago  is  much  greater  than  it  probably  is  in 
Massachusetts  or  in  St.  Louis.  But  even  after  taking  these  facts  into  account,  we  are  con- 
vinced, in  the  first  place,  that  the  economic  motive  is  not  the  determining  motive  of  chil- 
dren who  drop  out  of  the  elementary  schools,  and  in  the  second  place,  that  no  community 
can  afford  to  recognize  an  economic  situation,  in  which  families  must  depend  upon  the 
earnings  of  children  in  the  period  between  fourteen  and  sixteen,  as  so  legitimate,  that 
this  situation  should  determine  its  educational  policy.  No  community  can  afford  to  permit 
the  interests  of  child  labor  to  interfere  with  or  cut  short  the  education  it  can  give  its 
children. 

2  See  "  The  Results  of  Two  Examinations  of  German  Pupils,"  quoted  in  the  report  of 
the  Commissioner  of  Education,  1907,  Vol  I,  p.  175  ff.,  and  a  discussion  upon  these 
examinations  in  the  German  Reichstag,  quoted  in  the  report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Educa- 
tion, 1909,  Vol.  I,  p.  461  ff.  For  retardation  and  elimination,  see  Organisation  und 
Unterrichtserfolge  der  Staatischen  Volksschnlen  in  Deutschland,  Emil  Schwartz,  1907, 
Berlin,  p.  97  ff. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  5 

man  schools  elsewhere.  This  is  instructive,  because  the  German 
Volkschule —  or  people's  school  —  is  in  session  some  fifteen  hundred 
hours  during  the  year,  while  the  yearly  session  of  the  American  ele- 
mentary school  is  only  about  a  thousand  hours.  Furthermore,  there 
is  no  manual  training  nor,  excepting  needlework  for  the  girls  taken 
generally  during  the  boy's  gymnastic  period,  are  there  household 
arts  in  the  curriculum  of  the  German  Volkschule,  to  which  the 
American  elementary  school  gives  from  two  to  three  hours  a  week. 
Germany  seeks  to  meet  the  incompleteness  of  her  common  school 
education  by  continuation  classes  for  the  boys  who  go  from  school 
to  work.  These  continuation  classes  occupy  only  from  five  to  ten 
hours  a  week,  but  they  continue  until  the  boy  has  reached  the  age 
of  eighteen.  It  is  probable  that  the  number  of  children  who  drop 
out  from  the  fifth  grade  and  below  in  the  German  Volkschule  is 
smaller  than  the  corresponding  number  from  the  American  school 
systems.  It  is  also  probable  that  the  permanent  acquirements  of  the 
eliminated  children  are  greater  than  in  the  case  of  the  American 
eliminated  child.  Still,  with  greater  rigor  of  administration,  longer 
school  sessions,  and  a  more  restricted  curriculum  Germany  has  not 
completely  solved  this  problem.  For,  the  administration  of  the  con- 
tinuation school,  the  German  manufacturers  and  merchants  raise 
the  same  complaints  against  the  unsatisfactory  character  of  the  com- 
mon school  education  of  the  German  child  which  we  hear  in  Chicago 
and  elsewhere  in  America ;  though  the  comparison  of  the  results  of 
the  German  examinations-  with  those  presented  in  Part  TV  of  this 
report  indicates  that  the  German  complaints  are  by  no  means  so  fully 
justified  as  are  those  which  have  been  made  in  Chicago. 

In  the  opinion  of  your  committee,  a  discussion  of  the  question 
of  reducing  the  content  of  the  curriculum  of  the  American  school 
or  of  increasing  the  school  time  while  the  content  of  the  curriculum 
remains  the  same  would  have  only  academic  interest.  The  influences 
which  have  forced  continually  new  material  into  that  curriculum  are 
fundamental  influences  in  our  schools  and  in  the  community  at  large. 
They  are  as  American  as  are  our  public  schools.  There  is  no  reason 
to  believe  that  the  elementary  school  curriculum  will  be  cut  down 
and  school  time  increased  to  such  an  extent  that  over-age  will  dis- 
appear and  thus  automatically  eliminate  elimination.  Nor  would  it 
be  reasonable  to  simply  adopt  the  other  half  of  the  German  program 
and  to  try  to  meet  the  ineffective  education  which  follows  upon  elim- 
ination by  continuation  classes.     Continuation  classes  will  carry  on 


6  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

the  use  of  number  and  language  when  a  minimum  requirement  has 
been  reached.  They  will  not  supply  the  minimum  requirement.  The 
text  books  of  German  shop  arithmetics  contain  simply  problems  in 
number  work,  taken  from  the  trade  in  which  the  boy  has  been 
apprenticed.  Their  training  in  the  mother  tongue  is  continued  by 
the  writing  of  letters  appropriate  to  the  boy's  trade  and  the  use  of 
German  in  making  reports  and  estimates.  In  certain  of  the  German 
continuation  schools,  notably  those  of  Munich,  some  richer  material 
than  that  just  mentioned  is  introduced  into  the  curriculum.  In  gen- 
eral, however,  the  work  is  neither  fundamental  enough  to  take  the 
place  of  continuous  schoolwork  nor  is  the  course  rich  enough  in 
other  subjects  to  provide  the  training  which  we  have  come  to  believe 
is  essential  to  an  American  education.  Continuation  classes  would 
not  replace  the  training  which  only  a  little  more  than  half  of  the 
pupils  in  our  elementary  schools  are  able  to  secure.  If  the  child 
reaches  the  fifth,  sixth  or  seventh  grade  at  the  age  of  fourteen  other 
motives  must  be  brought  to  bear  upon  him  and  his  parents  if  he  is 
to  be  kept  in  school. 

Again,  it  is  the  generally  accepted  judgment  of  educators  that 
the  boy  and  girl  in  the  neighborhood  of  fourteen  are  so  much  inter- 
ested in  the  society  into  which  they  expect  to  enter  and  the  occupa- 
tions of  men  and  women  in  that  society,  that  a  school  which  does 
not  appeal  to  the  vocational  motive  is  bound  to  lose  the  interest  of  a 
great  number  of  these  children.  It  is  of  course  possible  that  the 
home  atmosphere  may  be  so  favorable  to  continuation  in  school, 
and  the  parents  may  so  influence  their  children  that  they  will  con- 
tinue to  follow  even  an  academic  course  of  study,  after  they  have 
reached  the  turning  point  of  the  adolescent  period.  But  most  of  the 
parents  and  homes  of  the  eliminated  children  are  not  interested  in 
the  continuation  of  the  children  in  school.  Very  many  accept  the 
compulsory  school  period  as  the  educational  standard  of  the  com- 
munity. This  is  not  the  only  instance  in  which  a  permissive  attitude 
of  the  lav/  tends  to  become  a  community  standard.  It  is  also  true 
that  the  majority  of  the  parents  of  these  children  are  mainly  inter- 
ested in  their  children's  occupations.  The  parents  are  as  much  sub- 
ject to  the  vocational  motive  as  are  their  children. 

We  are  therefore  confronted  by  this  situation :  an  elementary 
school  curriculum  which  only  a  half  of  our  children  follow  to  its 
conclusion,  and  yet  the  curriculum  is  such  that  those  who  drop  out 
only  imperfectly  acquire  what  they  have  studied. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATh  7 

The  retardation  or  over-age  of  our  school  children  takes  them 
beyond  the  age  of  compulsory  school  attendance,  and  children  at  this 
age,  as  well  as  the  parents,  are  predominately  interested  in  the  jobs 
they  can  secure ;  that  is,  they  are  interested  in  their  vocations  how- 
ever narrow  their  views  of  their  vocations  may  be. 

The  recommendation  [p.  15]  of  your  committee  is  that  indu>- 
trial,  i.  e.,  vocational  work3  should  be  introduced  into  the  seventh 
and  eighth  grades  of  the  elementary  school. 

We  do  not  believe  that  the  curriculum  should  be  impoverished 
for  a  class  of  children  who  wish  to  go  to  work  when  they  leave 
school.  We  heartily  recommend  [p.  24]  continuation  classes  for 
those  who  have  gone  to  work,  but  we  do  not  believe  that  these 
classes  can  replace  what  the  child  loses  by  leaving  the  school  before 
he  has  completed  the  whole  elementary  course. 

The  first  part  of  our  recommendation  is,  therefore,  a  plan, 
worked  out  in  some  detail,  of  a  type  of  school  in  which  half  of  the 
time  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades  may  be  given  to  vocational 
work,  while  during  the  other  half  of  the  school  time  we  are  confi- 
dent that  as  much  can  be  accomplished  in  the  academic  studies  as 
is  accomplished  to-day.  We  recommend  for  these  vocational  grades 
a  school  day  of  six  hours  instead  of  the  present  five  hours  and  a 
rearrangement  of  the  time  given  to  different  subjects.  From  a 
study  of  vocational  schools  elsewhere  in  America,  notably  in  Roches- 
ter [p.  170],  Albany  [p.  173],  and  Xew  York  City  [p.  179],  Xew 
York,  in  Fitchburg  [p.  164],  Newton  [p.  177],  and  Boston  [p.  166], 
Massachusetts,  and  in  Menominee  [p.  162],  Wisconsin,  we  have  con- 
vinced ourselves  that  vocational  work,  which  is  worth  the  while,  can 
be  done  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades  by  children  who  have  reached 
the  age  of  thirteen.  The  work  done  in  these  schools  is  not  of  a 
manual  training  character.  It  consists  in  actual  trade  processes 
and  produces  articles  which  have  commercial  value.  The  courses 
do  not  attempt  in  the  nature  of  the  case  to  make  mechanics  or 
artisans  of  the  children.  The  training  is  of  a  preparatory  trade 
character.  It  will  unquestionably  assist  the  child  in  his  later  trade 
training.     It  will  also  help  him  to  select  the  trade  for  which  he  is 

3  Vocational  work  is  done  as  far  as  possible  under  the  conditions  of  the  occupation 
outside  the  school.  Its  products,  so  far  as  possible,  are  commercial  products,  and  its 
processes  commercial  or  trade  processes.  Vocational  work  in  the  elementary  school  can 
not  be  trade  training  in  the  accepted  use  of  this  term,  because  the  children  have  not  yet 
reached  sufficient  maturity  for  the  trade  school.  Vocational  work  in  the  elementarj  • 
is  preparatory  trade  trainine,  and  as  such  is  different  in  princiole  from  manual  training 
[p.  28]. 


8  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

adapted.  It  is  our  belief  that  it  will  hold  the  child  in  school  who  at 
present  finds  nothing  there  that  interests  him,  and  will  quicken  the 
interest  of  his  parents  in  his  further  training.  It  will  hold  him  in 
school  so  that  he  can  permanently  acquire  what  the  elementary 
school  should  give  to  every  American  child,  and  what  it  can  not  give 
him  if  he  drops  out  before  he  has  completed  all  of  the  grades. 

We  recognize  that  such  an  innovation  must  be  worked  out  care- 
fully and  with  selected  teachers.  We  recommend  therefore  the 
establishment  of  not  more  than  three  of  these  schools  at  first,  and 
lay  stress  upon  the  need  of  well-equipped  shops  and  enthusiastic 
teachers  for  these  experimental  stations.  Such  schools  could  pass 
on  its  pupils  to  either  the  academic  or  technical  high  school  [p.  19], 
but  it  is  evident  that  there  should  be  also  trade  schools  for  boys 
who  have  reached  the  age  of  sixteen.  Such  schools,  similar  to  the 
trade  schools  in  the  Milwaukee  school  system,  should  be  established 
within  two  years  at  least  after  these  vocational  schools  have  been 
instituted  [p.  23], 

In  the  meantime  there  are  children  below  the  seventh  grade  who 
have  reached  the  age  of  twelve  and  thirteen  and  who  need  the 
appeal  of  the  vocational  motive.  For  these  children  rooms  or 
schools  —  one  perhaps  for  each  of  the  three  sides  of  the  city  — 
should  be  established  [p.  21].  We  have  one  that  approaches  what 
we  recommend  in  the  Farragut  school  in  Chicago  [p.  101].  The 
school  for  retarded  children  in  Cleveland  [p.  168]  shows  what  such 
training  can  accomplish.  We  insist,  however,  that  children  in  such 
rooms  must  have  a  very  large  degree  of  individual  attention,  and 
that  the  aim  of  the  training  should  be  to  return  them  to  the  grades 
so  that  they  may  complete  their  elementary  school  training. 

We  have  recommended  changes  in  our  technical  high  schools 
which  will  increase  their  capacity  by  one-third  [p.  25],  which  will 
enable  them  to  give  a  more  advanced  form  of  trade  training  as  well 
as  that  which  leads  up  to  the  technical  colleges  [p.  25].  We  have 
recommended  the  introduction  of  technical  training  for  girls  [p.  27] 
into  the  boys'  technical  high  schools  such  as  is  being  undertaken  in 
the  Lucy  Flower  Technical  High  School  for  girls. 

In  the  plan  which  has  been  outlined,  the  over-age  pupil  will  be 
met  by  vocational  work  and  individual  attention  below  the  seventh 
grade  in  the  schools  or  rooms  for  retarded  pupils.  If  the  over-age 
boy  or  girl  has  reached  the  seventh  grade  he  can  enter  one  of  the 
vocational  schools,  where  he  will  find  preparatory  trade  training  that 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  9 

will  appeal  directly  to  his  interest  in  the  work  of  the  outside  world 
and  yet  he  will  complete  his  seventh  and  eighth  grade.  When  he 
has  completed  these,  the  system  will  open  to  him  the  doors  either 
of  the  academic  high  school,  the  technical  high  school,  or  the  trade 
school,  for  this  boy  will  by  this  time  probably  have  reached  the  age 
of  sixteen.  If  he  has  graduated  from  the  elementary  school  at  the 
age  of  fourteen  or  fifteen,  before  he  can  profitably  enter  the  trade 
school  proper,  and  yet  wishes  to  prepare  for  the  trade  school,  we 
have  recommended  [p.  26]  that  he  be  provided  with  elementary 
trade  training  in  the  first  and  possible  second  year  of  the  technical 
high  school. 

Our  great  contention  is  that  vocational  training  be  introduced 
into  our  school  system  as  an  essential  part  of  its  education  —  in  no 
illiberal  sense  and  with  no  intention  of  separating  out  a  class  of 
workingmen's  children  who  are  to  receive  trade  training  at  the 
expense  of  academic  training.  We  are  convinced  by  what  we  have 
found  elsewhere  in  America,  as  well  as  in  other  countries,  that  such 
a  division  is  unnecessary.  We  are  convinced  that  just  as  liberal  a 
training  can  be  given  in  the  vocational  school  as  that  given  in  the 
present  academic  school.  Indeed,  we  feel  that  the  vocational  train- 
ing will  be  more  liberal  if  its  full  educational  possibilities  are  worked 
out. 

We  have  attempted  to  indicate  in  detail  how  the  vocational 
motive  may  be  introduced,  basing  our  suggestions  upon  actual  expe- 
riences and  results.  We  have  attempted  to  find  a  place  for  the  voca- 
tional motive  at  the  points  at  which  the  actual  condition  in  the 
Chicago  schools  shows  the  need,  and  we  have  indicated  how  such 
vocational  training  introduced  into  the  elementary  school  can  be 
carried  on  in  the  secondary  period. 

Finally  we  have  taken  into  account  the  economic  loss  to  children 
and  their  parents  if  they  remain  in  school  after  the  age  of  fourteen 
and  are  thus  deprived  of  the  opportunity  of  earning.  We  find 
that  the  boys  who  leave  school  to  go  to  work  between  the  ages  of 
fourteen  and  sixteen  are  idle  half  of  the  time,  and  earn  during  these 
two  years  not  more  than  an  average  of  $2  a  week  [pp.  3  1.  3?  1.  We 
find  that  they  are  not  needed  in  the  industries  of  Chicago  [p.  35] 
and  that  the  return  which  they  bring  in  to  their  homes  is  negligible. 
We  find  further  [p.  46],  that  which  all  students  of  children  out  of 
school  during  these  years  have  found,  that  they  gain  no  training 
that  is  of  value  for  them  in  later  years.    On  the  contrary  their  idle- 


10  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

ness  during  at  least  half  the  time,  their  frequent  passing  from  one 
job  to  another,  their  lack  of  any  responsibility,  necessarily  leads  to 
moral,  mental,  and  frequently  physical  degeneration.  During  two 
of  the  most  valuable  years  for  preparation  for  life  they  are  going 
backward  instead  of  forward. 

On  the  other  hand  we  find  that  Chicago  industries  are  in  need 
of  trained  operatives  and  mechanics,  which  Chicago  does  not  pro- 
vide [p.  42  ff].  From  nearly  all  industries  comes  the  demand  for 
more  skilled  and  responsible  workmen.  From  the  trade  unions 
comes  the  demand  for  vocational  and  trade  training  for  their  chil- 
dren, if  it  can  be  given  within  the  public  school  system  [p.  74  ff]. 

In  the  meantime  the  part-time  training  in  school  and  shop,  such 
as  that  already  in  operation  in  Lewis  Institute  [p.  137]  should  be 
pushed  as  far  and  as  rapidly  as  possible,  and  we  must  make  use  of 
the  other  types  of  continuation  schools  which  have  been  so  valuable 
to  Germany's  industries  [p.  24],  though  it  would  be  most  short- 
sighted to  expect  to  accomplish  what  we  must  accomplish  with  the 
continuation  school  alone. 

We  have  recommended  the  introduction  of  commercial  courses 
as  vocational  courses  in  the  elementary  schools  in  the  seventh  and 
eighth  grades  [p.  21],  and  following  upon  the  example  of  Boston 
and  Cleveland  we  have  recommended  the  establishment  of  a  commer- 
cial high  school  [p.  27].  Such  commercial  high  schools  bear  the 
same  relationship  to  the  preparation  for  commercial  occupations 
that  the  technical  high  schools  and  trade  schools  bear  to  the  mechan- 
ical occupations.  The  striking  and  admirable  results  attained  in 
Boston  and  Cleveland  leave  no  doubt,  in  the  minds  of  those  who  have 
studied  them,  of  their  value  both  to  the  community  and  to  the  school 
system  [p.  245  ff].  We  have  recommended  further  that  the  commer- 
cial training  which  must  still  be  given  in  other  high  schools  should 
be  brought  more  closely  under  the  control  of  commercial  standards 
and  processes  than  it  is  to-day  [p.  27].  There  is  evidence  of  the 
unsatisfactory  commercial  training  given  in  our  private  commercial 
colleges  and  the  vast  sums  which  are  paid  for  it  by  Chicago  every 
year  [p.  258  ff.  and  p.  256]. 

We  find  finally  that  an  adequate  school  system  such  as  we  have 
endeavored  to  outline  will  leave  no  justification  for  the  absence  from 
school  of  our  children  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen. 
The  children  lose  morally,  mentally  and  physically  by  this  prema- 
ture entrance  into  industry.     The  industries  have  no  legitimate  need 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS'  11 

for  them.  They  bring  in  an  insignificant  return  to  their  parents  and 
they  have  gained  no  training  for  later  occupations.  We  recommend 
therefore  that  when  Chicago  has  introduced  into  her  school  system 
vocational  training  appropriate  to  the  fourteen  to  sixteen  year  period, 
she  should  demand  compulsory  attendance  upon  school  between  the 
ages  of  seven  and  sixteen  [p.  25],  though  we  have  called  attention 
to  the  Ohio  law  which  more  modestly  requires  that  the  children 
must  attend  continuation  classes  during  the  fourteen  to  sixteen 
year  period,  leaving,  however,  this  requirement  to  the  option  of  the 
communities  [p.  130]. 

While  we  have  felt  that  we  should  make  our  recommendations 
as  detailed  as  possible,  we  have  undertaken  to  suggest  nothing  that 
involves  revolutionary  procedure.  We  have  asked  for  experimental 
stations  where  the  method  of  introducing  vocational  training  into 
the  schools  can  be  worked  out  carefully  under  the  most  favorable 
conditions. 

In  conclusion  we  again  insist  that  vocational  and  trade  training 
must  appear  in  the  American  public  school  as  an  essential  part  of 
that  unique  institution.  Nothing  of  the  meaning  of  our  own  public 
school  system  must  be  lost,  nor  can  we  hope  to  solve  this  complex 
and  difficult  problem  by  simply  copying  methods  from  other  com- 
munities, not  even  those  of  Germany.  We  make  these  recommenda- 
tions with  more  confidence  because  they  seem  to  us  to  be  in  harmony 
with  the  present  policy  of  the  Board  of  Education  of  Chicago,  and 
of  its  Superintendent  of  Schools.  Mrs.  Ella  Flagg  Young.  Evidence 
for  this  is  found  in  the  installation  of  the  Lucy  Flower  Technical 
High  School  for  girls;  the  enlarged  and  improved  course  of  study 
for  the  Apprentice  Schools ;  the  increase  of  vocational  work  in  the 
technical  high  schools  for  boys,  and  the  encouragement  of  part  time 
work  in  the  last  year  of  these  courses ;  the  increase  of  vocational 
work  in  the  night  schools ;  the  two-year  vocational  courses  offered 
in  all  the  high  schools  ;  the  industrial  course  for  retarded  children 
in  the  Farragut  school ;  and  the  plan  printed  in  the  last  "  Course 
of  Study  "  for  industrial  courses  in  the  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth 
grades.  The  movement  in  the  school  system  itself  is  toward  voca- 
tional work.  We  have  endeavored  to  indicate  where  and  how 
vocational  work  should  in  our  opinion  appear  as  a  constituent  part 
of  the  curriculum,  providing  not  only  a  considerable  portion  of  its 
content,  but  also  a  method  of  training  and  a  point  of  view  from 
which  to  interpret  life. 


12  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


B.     RECOMMENDATIONS 

By 

The  Sub-committee 


In  the  recommendations  which  follow,  the  attempt  is  made  to 
present  a  fairly  complete  outline  of  provisions  which  should  be  made 
in  the  public  schools  to  meet  in  an  initial  way  the  need  for  voca- 
tional training  in  the  city.  The  various  types  of  courses  recom- 
mended are  intended  to  meet  this  need  not  only  for  pupils  who 
continue  in  school  for  the  full  twelve  grades,  but  also  for  those  who 
are  likely  to  leave  school  at  various  points  before  completing  the 
course. 

Individuals  may  be  classified  into  the  following  five  groups  with 
respect  to  their  need  for  vocational  courses  in  the  schools : 

(1)  Those  who  leave  school  in  various  grades  below  the  high 
school ; 

(2)  Those  who  enter  the  high  school  but  do  not  finish  the  course  ; 

(3)  Those  who  complete  the  high  school  course  but  do  not  enter 
college ; 

(4)  Those  who  finish  the  high  school  and  enter  college ; 

(5)  Those  who  are  already  at  work  in  the  industries. 

It  is  especially  important  to  provide  for  those  who  leave  school 
at  fourteen  years  of  age  (mainly  in  group  (1),  above)  by  giving 
them  the  opportunity  to  take  vocational  courses  one  or  two  years 
before  reaching  that  age,  no  matter  what  grade  they  are  in.  The 
schools  of  types  1,  2,  and  3,  below,  are  intended  for  such  pupils, 
type  2  primarily  for  over-age  pupils.  By  appealing  in  this  way  to 
the  vocational  motive  of  pupils  before  they  are  old  enough  to  leave 
school  it  is  hoped  that  they  may  be  aroused  to  an  appreciation  of 
the  value  of  further  school  training  after  the  compulsory  attendance 
period.  These  schools  may  help  materially  in  retaining  pupils  in 
school  at  the  point  where  the  greatest  and  most  serious  elimination 
now  occurs.  Such  schools  can  also  do  much  to  help  solve  the  prob- 
lem of  a  suitable  training  for  the  unskilled  worker,  for  they  will 
take  thr  pupil  before  he  enters  the  industries  and  should  give  him 
a  preliminary  training  n  skill  which  will  serve  as  capital  for  his 
future  work,  and  they  should  develop  a  degree  of  industrial  intelli- 
gence and  adaptability  which  will  enable  the  worker  to  rise  from 
unskilled  or  only  slightly  skilled  occupations  to  positions  requiring 
skill  and  intelligence. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  13 

Pupils  below  the  high  school  (group  (1)  above)  who  are  sixteen 
years  of  age  (or  fourteen  years,  for  girls)  may  enter  the  trade 
schools  proper  (types  4  and  5,  below),  provided  they  have  com- 
pleted grade  six.  For  the  boy  who  completes  grade  eight  at  four- 
teen or  fifteen  years  of  age,  and  who  wants  to  enter  the  trade  school, 
provision  is  made  by  offering  special  work  in  the  first  year  or  two 
of  the  technical  high  school  (see  type  10  below)  preparatory  to  the 
work  in  the  trade  school. 

For  pupils  who  take  a  complete  high-school  course,  but  who  do 
not  enter  college  (group  (3)  above),  provision  is  made  in  the  recom- 
mendation for  a  four-year  and  for  a  six-year  finishing  course,  with 
specialization  in  the  latter  part  of  the  course,  preparing  definitely 
for  vocations  (type  10,  below).  A  suitable  degree  of  flexibility  in 
this  course,  together  with  the  two-year  vocational  courses  now 
offered,  will  provide  also  for  those  high-school  pupils  who  leave 
school  before  finishing  the  course  (group  (2),  above). 

For  pupils  of  group  (4),  those  who  go  on  through  high  school 
and  into  college,  provision  has  long  been  made  in  the  regular  course 
of  study.  Additional  provision  has  recently  been  made  in  the  two- 
year  college  technical  course. 

For  persons  already  at  work  in  the  industries  (group  (5),  above) 
provision  is  made  in  the  recommendation  for  continuation  schools 
(items  6,  7,  and  8,  below). 

The  diagram  facing  page  14  shows  in  schematic  form  the  articu- 
lation of  the  proposed  schools  and  courses  with  present  schools. 

For  the  schools  recommended  in  1,  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  13,  below,  it  is 
strongly  urged  that  a  separate  or  independent  organization  be  pro- 
vided, with  a  principal  and  staff  of  teachers  specially  fitted  for,  and 
giving  their  attention  exclusively  to,  this  work.  This  is  necessary 
in  order  to  give  these  schools  the  distinctive  aim  and  purpose  which 
they  should  have,  and  it  is  of  very  great  importance  in  the  present 
experimental  stage  of  vocational  training,  when  a  content  and  a 
method  for  these  courses  are  still  to  be  developed.  Not  all  teachers 
have  the  special  training  and  ability  needed  for  this  pioneer  work : 
not  all  are  yet  in  full  sympathy  with  vocational  training.  This  lack 
of  sympathy  on  the  part  of  many  teachers  and  principals  is  well 
brought  out  in  a  recent  report  of  the  Superintendent  of  Chicago 
Schools3,  and  should  emphasize  the  importance  of  the  independent 
organization  here   recommended.     It  is  of  the  utmost  importance 

3  June  30,  1911,  p.  7. 


14  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

that  vocational  courses  should  preserve  their  integrity,  that  they 
should  be  really  vocational  if  they  pretend  to  be.  The  independent 
organization,  established  in  certain  centers  of  the  city,  and  having 
a  select  staff  of  teachers,  could  render  valuable  service  in  working 
out  a  content  and  method  for  similar  courses  to  be  established  later, 
or  simultaneously,  in  the  regular  schools  in  other  parts  of  the  city. 
When  vocational  training  is  once  thoroughly  established,  with  a 
definite  content  and  method,  it  should  not  be  impossible  to  weld 
together  the  various  parts  of  the  school  system  so  as  to  preserve  a 
proper  social  balance. 

The  shopwork  in  the  industrial  courses  recommended  should 
have  the  character  of  actual  trade  work,  approximating  as  closely 
as  possible  the  best  conditions  prevailing  in  the  industries  themselves. 
This  may  be  done,  as  it  is  at  present  done  in  many  industrial  schools4, 
by  the  making  of  equipment,  apparatus  and  other  articles  of  a  dis- 
tinctly commercial  standard  actually  needed  and  put  to  use  in  the 
schools  or  elsewhere.  Shopwork  of  this  character,  as  over  against 
the  more  or  less  dilettante  and  abstract  work  of  the  usual  manual 
training  course,  gives  a  definite  vocational  trend  to  the  industrial 
courses  and  thus  presents  added  stimuli  to  work  on  the  part  of  the 
pupils. 

The  so-called  Chicago  course  at  present  given  in  the  eighth  grade 
is  an  example  of  the  richer  and  more  educative  kind  of  academic 
subject  matter  which  can  be  introduced  not  only  into  the  eighth  but 
also  into  the  seventh  grade  in  our  schools.  The  children,  by  the  time 
they  have  reached  the  seventh  grade,  are  able  to  appreciate  in  some 
degree  the  relation  of  what  they  are  learning  to  the  life  and  occupa- 
tions of  the  community.  This  is  an  opportunity  of  which  the  fullest 
use  should  be  made  not  only  for  intellectual,  but  also  for  moral  edu- 
cation. Vocational  training  has  the  great  advantage  of  presenting 
points  of  contact  between  the  studies  and  occupations  in  the  school 
and  the  life  of  the  community.  By  using  these  the  mathematics  and 
elementary  science  on  the  one  hand  and  the  geography  and  history  on 
the  other  can  be  lifted  out  of  mere  text-book  studies  and  become 
interpretations  of  the  activities  and  social  life  of  the  community. 
It  is  the  opinion  of  the  committee  therefore  that  while  some  time 
can  be  saved  by  bringing  science  and  mathematics  together,  and  his- 
tory and  geography  together,  the  curriculum  of* the  vocational  courses 
can  give  a  more  thorough  intellectual  and  moral  training  than  the 

4  See  p.  161  ff. 


Dia6ran    Showing  Articulation    or  Proposed    Schools  Ann  (owycs    with  Cxisnne    icnooLS  and  with  Occupations- 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  15 

curricula  of  courses  which  lack  this  immediate  connection  with  the 
life  of  the  city. 

As  a  result  of  its  study  of  conditions  in  Chicago  and  in  twenty- 
seven  other  cities,  the  committee  respectfully  recommends  that  the 
following  provisions  be  made  for  vocational  training  in  the  public 
schools  of  the  city. 

1.     Two-year  Elementary  Vocational  Schools 

Establish  a  two-year  vocational  school  admitting  boys  and  girls 
at  thirteen  years  of  age  who  have  had  the  equivalent  of  a  six-grade 
training.  At  least  half  of  the  time  should  be  devoted  to  hand- 
work, including  drawing,  in  the  elementary  phases  of  some  of 
the  trades  listed  below.  The  remaining  time  should  be  devoted  to 
academic  subjects  intimately  related  to  the  work  of  the  trades.  The 
school  day  should  be  at  least  six  hours  (60  minutes  each). 

Graduates  of  this  school  should  be  admitted  to  the  trade  schools 
proper  (4  and  5,  below)  and  to  all  courses  in  the  high  school. 

Pupils  with  an  academic  status  below  that  of  the  sixth  grade 
should  also  be  admitted  to  this  school  for  special  work,  at  the  dis- 
cretion of  the  principal.  Such  special  students  would  not  ordinarily 
be  eligible  for  admission  to  high-school  courses  after  two  years  in 
the  vocational  school. 

The  trades  furnishing  appropriate  shop  work  for  the  vocational 
school  may  be  classified  in  the  following  groups : 

For  Eoys 

1.  Building  trades 

Carpentry,  plumbing,  steam  and  gas  fitting,  sheet  metal,  electrical 
construction,  bricklaying,  tile  setting,  concrete  work,  painting  (house, 
sign,  and  fresco),  paper  hanging,  architectural  drafting 

2.  Machine  trades 

Pattern  making,  foundry  work,  forge  work,  bench  and  vise  work, 
machine  practice,  machine  drafting 

3.  Furniture  trades 

Cabinet  making,  finishing,  upholstering 

4.  Printing  trades 

Typesetting,  bookbinding,  engraving,  lithography 

5.  General  wood  and  metal  work 

Joinery,  turning,  cabinet  making,  pattern  making,  foundry  work, 
forge  work,  bench  and  vise  work,  machine  practice 


16  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

For  Girls 

6.  Bookbinding,  engraving,  photography,  dressmaking,  millinery,  garment 
making,  embroidery,  laundering,  cooking,  institutional  and  lunch- 
room management 

Homemaking :  cooking,  sewing,  house  sanitation  and  manage- 
ment, dietetics,  care  of  infants  and  invalids,  house  decorating  and 
fitting,  household  accounts 

Specialization  in  a  particular  trade  for  the  entire  two  years  should 
not  be  permitted.  All  pupils  should  be  required  to  work  in  several 
related  trades  in  one  or  more  of  the  above  trade  groups.  Group  5 
is  intended  especially  for  boys  who  have  not  decided  upon  the  par- 
ticular trade  they  wish  ultimately  to  follow.  Since  girls  must  be 
prepared  for  their  function  of  homemakers  as  well  as  for  work  in  a 
particular  trade,  it  is  important  that  all  girls  be  required  to  take 
work  in  homemaking  in  addition  to  the  trade  work  selected. 

In  order  to  maintain  a  proper  standard  of  shopwork,  and  to 
approximate  as  closely  as  possible  the  best  conditions  in  actual  trade 
work,  the  products  made  in  the  shop  should,  whenever  possible,  be 
those  which  are  actually  needed  and  put  to  use  in  the  schools  or  else- 
where. The  kind  of  work  here  referred  to  is  shown  by  the  following 
lists  of  products  made  in  certain  industrial  schools  by  students  of 
essentially  the  same  stage  of  advancement  as  those  for  whom  the 
vocational  school  is  intended. 

Wood-working 

Work  benches,  looms,  and  saw-horses  constructed.  Assisted  in  mak- 
ing kitchen  tables.  Making  teachers'  desks  for  entire  building.  Building 
partitions  and  300  lockers  [p.  165]5 

25  large  drawing  boards  12  umbrella  racks 

100  primary  looms  50  book  cases,  2  designs,  at  $10 

25  pillow  looms,  with  heddles  120  desk  chairs 

100  drawing  kits  20  sanitary  teachers'  desks 

25  sawhorses  12  music  cabinets 

50  sewing  boxes  [p.  172] 

36  manual  training  benches 

Three  houses  were  built,  in  miniature.  The  smallest,  three  feet  by 
five  feet,  is  a  two-story  braced  frame  with  no  inside  partitions.  The  mid- 
dle house,  six  by  eight,  is  a  two-story  balloon  frame,  with  staircase  and 
closet  on  the  first  floor.  The  largest,  eight  feet  by  fifteen  feet,  is  a  three- 
room  bungalow,  with  full  head  room,  with  a  chimney  and  fireplace  put 
up  by  the  bricklaying  class,  and  with  plumbing  fixtures   for  the  kitchen 

5  The  page  citations  refer  to  the  descriptions  of  schools  in  Chapter  VII,  from  which 
the  lists  of  products  are  taken. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  17 

and  bath  installed  by  the  plumbing  class.  The  large  house  is  to  be 
shingled  and  clapboarded,  upper  floors  are  to  be  laid,  two  of  the  rooms 
sheathed,  and  one  of  them  plastered  [p.  163] 

Building   partitions    in    cellar,    teachers'    lockers,    supply    cupboards, 
porch,   storm   house;    laying  floors,   moving  of  portable  school  building 
[p.  173] 
Painting  and  finishing 

Steam  pipes  bronzed  to  match  color  of  the  walls.  Floors  oiled. 
Chairs  for  building  bought  in  the  white,  finished  and  seated  by  pupils. 
Kitchen,  dining-room,  wood-working  room,  locker-rooms  painted.  Work 
benches  and  teachers'  desks  finished.  Library  room  painted  and  papered 
[p.  165] 
Bricklaying 

All  the  brickwork  for  a  small  annex  to  one  of  the  school  buildings 
done  by  pupils  [p.  164] 
Plumbing 

Installation  of  school  kitchen  and  chemical  laboratory  fixtures,  includ- 
ing the  setting  up  of  individual  gas  stoves,  sinks  with  necessary  connec- 
tions, an  instantaneous  hot-water  heater  for  the  kitchen,  and  several 
lead-lined  sinks  for  the  laboratory.  Structural  and  rail  work  with  iron 
piping   [p.  164] 

Repairing  closet  tank,  automatic  tilting  tank,  broken  water  pipes,  leak 
in  flush  pipe,  sanitary  drinking  fountain,  basin  cocks ;  connecting  gas 
plate,  installing  basin  bowl,  removing  stoppage  in  basin  waste  [p.  17:; j 

Electrical  work 

Repairing   lights,    telephone,    fire    gongs,    motor;     installing   5    H-P. 
motor,  and  stereopticon  lantern  [p.  173] 
Machine  shop 

100  drill  bases  planed 
1,700  drill  blanks  turned 

cutting  several  hundred  gears 
300  bronze  bushings 

120  binder  pulley  shafts  turned  and  ground 
100  reverse  clutches,  bored  and  turned 
50  to  75  lathe  tool  posts  complete 

several  hundred  grinder  spindles  complete 
25  sets  change  gears,  12-inch  lathes,  complete 
12  11-inch  engine  lathes  complete 
120  heavy  forged  screws 
[p.  185] 
Carpentry,  plumbing,  machine  shop 

All  the  carpenter  work  and  plumbing  required  in  the  remodeling  of  a 
factory  building  purchased  for  the  use  of  the  school  has  been  done  by 
students.  The  repairing,  overhauling,  and  reinstalling  of  the  machine- 
shop  equipment,  partially  destroyed  by  a  recent  fire,  has  also  been  done 
by  students.  For  this  work  students  were  paid  by  the  school  at  a  rate 
per  hour  determined  by  their  proficiency  [p.  L82] 
3 


L8 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Work  done  by  girls 

The  girls  prepare,  serve,  and  manage  the  finances  of  the  noonday 
lunch  for  the  school,  which  is  furnished  to  the  students  at  cost.  Pies, 
bread,  etc.,  are  also  made  by  the  girls  and  sold  to  private  families.  In 
the  sewing  work  uniforms  are  made  for  the  cooking  class,  overalls  for 
the  boys  of  the  shop,  curtains  and  various  linen  articles  for  the  dining 
room,  bedroom,  etc.,  and  a  number  of  flags  for  the  city  school   [p.   173] 

Binding  of  1,000  small  notebooks,  100  teachers'  manuals,  and  rebind- 
ing  of  500  dilapidated  books   from  neighboring  school  libraries   [p.   182] 

The  weekly  time  schedule  recommended  for  the  vocational  school 
is  shown  in  Table  1,  below,  with  the  corresponding  schedule  for 
grade  7  of  the  regular  course  of  study. 


Table  1. 
Vocational  School 


Time  Schedules 

Regular  Course  of  Study6 
Grade  Seven 


Subject  7 

No.  of 

minutes  per 
week 

Subject 

No.  of 

minutes  per 

week 

900 

Industrial  arts 

180 

Shop  work  and  drawing. .  .  . 

Art 

90 

Shop  science  and  shop  mathe- 
matics  

150 

Nature  study 

60 

Mathematics 

150 

Industrial  geography-history 

150 
300 

History  and  civics 

758 

Geography 

759 

English,  penmanship 

English 

300 

General   use,  recesses,  physi- 
cal education,  opening  ex- 
ercises, study,  music 

300 

General  use,  recesses,  phy- 
sical education,  opening 
exercises,  study 

405 

Music 

90 

Penmanship 

Total 

75 

Total 

1,800 

1,500 

It  is  recommended  that  all  the  academic  subjects  in  the  voca- 
tional school  be  related  intimately  to  industrial  needs  and  conditions, 
taking  their  points  of  departure,  where  possible,   from  the  trades 

9  From  the   Course  of  Study  for  Elementary  Schools,  1911. 

7  The  subjects  to  be  taken  by  the  boys  are  given  in  the  table.  The  corresponding  sub- 
jects for  girls  should  receive  the  same  time  allotment. 

8  One  hundred  and  fifty  minutes  a  week  during  second  half-year   (semester). 

9  One  hundred  and  fifty  minutes  a  week  during  first  half-year   (semester). 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS 


19 


represented  in  the  school.  The  science  and  mathematics  should  be 
treated  largely  as  one  subject,  but  not  exclusively  so.  The  geogra- 
phy-history and  civics  should  be  similarly  treated  and  should  include 
much  of  what  is  now  offered  in  the  "  Chicago  course."  Specific 
illustrations  of  the  kind  of  subject  matter  here  referred  to  are  fur- 
nished by  the  outlines,  on  pages  215-231  of  this  report,  of  academic 
subjects  given  in  certain  industrial  courses. 

The  time  available  for  the  academic  subjects  in  the  vocational 
school  (Table  2,  below)  is  135  minutes  less  than  in  the  regular  grade 

Table  2 


In 

vocational 

school 

In 
regular 
grade  7 

In 

elementary 

industrial 

course11 

No.  of  minutes  per  week  available 
for  the  regular  academic  subjects. 

600 

73510 

560 

7,  but  40  minutes  more  than  that  in  the  elementary  industrial  course 
recently  provided.  It  is  the  opinion  of  the  committee  that  if  the 
academic  subjects  are  organized  and  presented  as  indicated  above  a 
much  more  valuable  type  of  training  will  result  than  that  which  is 
obtained  from  the  academic  subjects  as  usually  presented  in  the  regu- 
lar grades  7  and  8,  and  that  graduates  of  the  vocational  school  would 
be  qualified,  on  the  academic  side,  to  do  the  work  of  the  high  school 
at  least  as  well  as  graduates  of  the  regular  elementary  course  of 
study.  In  Albany,  New  York,  graduates  of  the  vocational  school  are 
admitted  to  all  courses  in  the  high  school  [p.  174].  In  Newton, 
Massachusetts,  graduates  of  the  vocational  school  are  admitted  to 
the  technical  courses  in  the  high  school  [p.  178]. 

The  committee  believes  that  a  school  of  this  type,  in  which  the 
vocational  impulse  of  pupils  is  allowed  opportunity  for  expression 
under  expert  direction,  would  aid  boys  and  girls  to  "  find  "  them- 
selves. Those  pupils  who  had  decided  on  a  particular  vocation 
might  here  begin  to  prepare  for  it  and  those  without  definite  aim 
might  take  a  general  course,  made  from  the  elements  of  several 
vocations,  for  the  purpose  of  gaining  a  broad  outlook  that  would 
make  easier  an  intelligent  choice  in  the  future.  Probably  many 
pupils  would  thereby  discover  that  they  were  not  fitted  for  any  of 
the  vocations  offered,  a  knowledge  that  might  prevent  anguish  of 
soul  and  loss  of  time  and  energy  in  the  future.     For  the  pupil  who 

10  Not  including  the  time  allotted  to  music. 

11  See  p.  10S. 


20  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

discovers  that  his  interests  or  talents  do  not  lie  in  any  of  the  voca- 
tions offered,  this  course  makes  easy  the  transition  to  business  or 
profession. 

The  seriousness  of  this  type  of  school  should  not  be  overlooked 
by  the  educator.  A  merely  intensified  form  of  manual  training  will 
not  serve  the  purposes  of  the  pupils  nor  of  the  industrial  world. 
For  the  purposes  of  conventional  culture  the  usual  type  of  manual 
training  serves  fairly  well ;  but  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  a  voca- 
tional school  is  primarily  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  pupils  to 
select  and  acquire  a  vocation.  If  pupils  are  allowed  to  dawdle  and 
play  with  industrial  elements  they  will  gain  false  ideas  of  industry 
that  will  justify  the  criticism  so  often  made  that  the  schools  fail  to 
teach  economy  of  time  and  effort.  True,  no  school  can  give  the 
powerful  incentive  to  good  industrial  work  that  is  forced  on  the 
business  world  by  economic  stress,  but  some  knowledge  of  the  value 
of  time  and  well  directed  energy  should  be  one  of  the  important 
aims  of  the  vocational  school.  A  dilettante  system  of  manual  train- 
ing with  culture  as  its  only  aim  will  defeat  the  purpose  of  this  school ; 
but  if  the  elementary  processes  of  industry  are  shown  in  their  rela- 
tions to  mathematics,  language,  history  and  science,  pupils  will  feel 
a  joy  in  work  that  comes  from  strength  and  skill  and  breadth  of 
knowledge.  Is  not  the  belief  justified  that  such  a  course  would  tend 
to  prolong  the  school  life  of  many  boys  and  girls  who  would  other- 
wise go  into  industry  at  fourteen  ? 

Objections  will  be  made  that  we  are  advocating  specialization  at 
too  early  an  age.  A  study  of  statistics  shows,  however,  that  for  a 
large  percentage  of  children  fate  decrees  specialization  without 
preparation,  at  the  end  of  the  compulsory  school  term.  This  recom- 
mendation would  substitute  the  specialization  of  school  for  the 
specialization  of  industry.  Until  the  compulsory  school  age  is  raised 
what  else  can  be  done  to  keep  pupils  in  school?  And  when  the  age 
limit  is  raised  will  it  not  still  be  necessary  to  give  this  type  of  educa- 
tion to  the  many  who  are  not  interested  in  the  traditional  academic 
training?  Every  attempt  to  introduce  vocational  training  in  this 
country  impels  the  advocates  of  culture  to  protest.  Unfortunately 
they  do  not  show  how  the  schools  can  give  culture  to  pupils  who 
refuse  to  attend.  The  experience  of  other  American  cities  proves 
that  a  specialization  that  avoids  "  blind  alleys  "  in  education  is  not 
only  feasible  but  highly  successful.  In  Germany,  according  to 
Kerschensteiner  ("Three  Lectures  on  Vocational  Training,"  p.  15), 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  21 

"  as  a  rule  both  boys  and  girls  are  ready  to  enter  a  calling  at  the 
close  of  their  fourteenth  year.  From  an  educational  point  of  view- 
it  is  desirable  to  make  fourteen  the  age  for  commencing,  for  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  working  at  a  trade  is  or  might  be  an  essential 
factor  in  the  formation  of  character."  If  Germany  is  satisfied  to 
begin  regular  trade  apprenticeship  at  fourteen  it  would  seem  that 
the  less  highly  specialized  form  of  education  proposed  by  the  com- 
mittee might  safely  be  tried  at  thirteen,  especially  as  a  change  of 
purpose  is  allowed  for  by  the  flexibility  of  the  course.  It  is  impor- 
tant that  pupils  be  allowed  to  take  this  course  before  the  end  of  the 
compulsory  period  so  that  their  school  interests  may  be  strengthened 
sufficiently  to  withstand  the  allurements  of  immediate  wages. 

2.     Elementary  Industrial  Schools  for  Over-age  Children  Below 

Grade  Seven 

In  at  least  three  centers  of  the  city,  establish  an  ungraded  indus- 
trial school  for  boys  and  girls  in  grades  below  the  seventh  who  are  at 
least  twelve  years  of  age  and  who  have  lost  interest  and  fallen 
behind  in  the  regular  grade  work.  At  least  half  of  the  time  should 
be  given  to  such  handwork  and  drawing  as  will  appeal  to  the  voca- 
tional motive  and  interest  of  the  pupils.  The  academic  subjects 
should  be  adapted  to  the  previous  attainments  of  the  pupils  and 
should  be  closely  related  to  the  handwork  and  to  industrial  needs. 
The  school  should  aim  to  develop  the  pupils  on  the  academic  side, 
largely  by  individual  work,  so  that  they  may  in  time  return  to  regu- 
lar work  in  the  grades.    Thirty  hours  (60  minutes  each)  a  week. 

The  shopwork  should  include  the  elementary  phases  of  some  of 
the  trades  listed  under  type  1,  above  [p.  15].  In  addition,  general 
repair  work  and  the  making  of  equipment  and  apparatus  in  large 
quantities  for  use  in  the  schools  should  be  introduced.  Examples 
of  such  shopwork  may  be  found  in  the  detailed  description  of 
schools  in  Chapter  VII,  especially  pages  162-170. 

3.     Optional  Industrial  and  Commercial  Courses  in  Grades 
Seven  and  Eight 

In  at  least  three  centers  of  the  city,  offer  a  differentiated  curricu- 
lum in  grades  7  and  8,  open  to  pupils  who  have  finished  grade  6.  and 
including  the  following  three  courses  of  study12 : 

u  A  good  example  of  such  a  curriculum  is  found  in  the  Fitchburg  grammar  school 
[see  p.  164].  A  fourth  course  similar  to  the  Literary  Course  in  the  Fitchburg  grammar 
school  might  well  be  offered  in  each  of  these  centers.  In  this  course  one-sixth  of  the  time 
should  be  given  to  a  modern  foreign  language,  one-sixth  to  shopwork  and  drawing  for 
boys  and  household  arts  for  girls,  and  the  remaining  time  to  academic  studies  similar  in 
the  main  to  those  in  courses  (1)   and   (2).     Thirty  hours  (60  minutes  each)   a  week. 


22 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


(1)  An  industrial  course  giving  one-third  of  the  time  to 
shop  work  and  drawing  for  boys,  and  household  arts  and  design 
for  girls,  the  remainder  of  the  time  being  devoted  to  related 
academic  studies.    Thirty  hours  (60  minutes  each)  a  week. 

(2)  A  commercial  course  giving  one-third  of  the  time  to 
bookkeeping,  business  forms  and  methods,  business  arithmetic, 
typewriting,  and  handwork,  and  the  remainder  of  the  time  to 
related  academic  studies.  Thirty  hours  (60  minutes  each)  a 
week. 

(3)  The  present   course  of   study   regularly   provided   for 
grades  7  and  8.    Twenty-five  hours  (60  minutes  each)  a  week. 
Graduates  of   any  one  of  the  above  three  courses  should  be 

admitted  to  any  course  in  the  high  school. 

The  weekly  time  schedule  recommended  for  course  (l)13  is 
shown  in  Table  3,  below,  with  the  corresponding  schedule  for  the 
elementary  industrial  course  recently  authorized  for  Chicago  schools. 
The  latter  course  is  outlined  in  the  Course  of  Study,  adopted  June 
29,  1910,  but  it  is  not  yet  actually  given  in  any  of  the  schools. 
Table  3.  "Weekly  Time  Schedules 
Elementary  Industrial  Course  Elementary  Industrial  Course 

(proposed)  (recently  authorized) 


Subjects 

No.  of 

minutes  per 
week 

Subject 

No.  of 

minutes  per 
week 

Shop  work  and  drawing 

600 

Art  and  industrial  arts .... 

61515 

Applied    science,  applied 

150 

Nature  study 

6015 

English,  history  and  civ- 
ics, mathematics,  geog- 
raphy,   Chicago    course 
(special),  penmanship.  . 

Industrial    geography-h  i  s  - 
tory   and   civics,    Chicago 

180 

500 

English 

300 

Penmanship 

75 

Physical    education,    study, 
general  use,  recesses 

405 

Physical  education,  music, 
study,   general  use,   re- 

325 

Music 

90 

Total 

1,800 

Total 

1,500 

13  A  similar  time  schedule  is  recommended  for  course   (2). 

14  The    subjects   to   be   taken   by   the   boys   are   given   in    the    table.      The   corresponding 
subjects  for  the  girls  should  receive  the  same  time  allotment. 

15  For  purposes  of  comparison  the  time  assumed  to  be  allotted  to  nature  study  is  taken 
from  the  industrial  arts  period  and  is  scheduled  separately. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  23 

Course  (1),  above,  is  recommended  to  take  the  place  of  the  ele- 
mentary industrial  course  recently  authorized  for  grades  6,  7,  and  8. 
The  two  courses  differ  in  the  following  three  respects:  (a)  course 
(1)  is  not  recommended  for  grade  6 ;  (b)  five  hours  more  per  week 
are  recommended  in  course  (1),  making  it  possible  to  give  more 
time  to  the  academic  subjects;  (c)  a  more  practical  kind  of  shop- 
work  is  recommended  for  course  (1). 

The  committee's  reasons  for  not  recommending  course  (1)  for 
grade  6  are  based  on  two  principles  fairly  well  settled  in  current 
practice  in  such  courses :  in  the  first  place,  such  courses  are  not  in 
general  offered  to  pupils  below  twelve  years  of  age,  and  in  the  second 
place,  the  completion  of  the  sixth  grade  is  commonly  accepted  as 
a  standard,  on  the  academic  side,  for  admission  to  such  courses. 
Retarded  pupils  who  are  twelve  years  of  age  in  grade  6  or  below  are 
provided  for  in  the  committee's  recommendations  in  type  2,  above. 
It  is  unnecessary  and  unwise,  in  the  opinion  of  the  committee,  to 
give  so  little  time  to  academic  subjects  as  is  scheduled  in  the  elemen- 
tary industrial  course  recently  authorized  for  Chicago  schools.  With 
the  time  allotted  to  handwork,  the  school  week  can  readily  be 
lengthened  by  five  hours  without  bringing  undue  fatigue  upon  pupils, 
thus  providing  more  time  for  academic  subjects.  The  shopwork 
for  course  (1)  should  include  the  elementary  phases  of  some  of  the 
trades  listed  under  type  1,  above  [p.  15].  In  addition,  general 
repair  work  and  the  making  of  equipment  and  apparatus  in  large 
quantities  for  use  in  the  schools  should  be  introduced.  Examples 
of  such  shopwork  may  be  found  in  the  detailed  descriptions  of 
schools  in  Chapter  VII,  especially  pages  1G2-170.16 

The  academic  subjects  in  courses  (1)  and  (2)  should  be  closely 
related  to  industrial  and  commercial  needs  and  conditions  in  the 
manner  indicated  in  the  recommendations  for  the  academic  subjects 
under  type  1,  above  [p.  18]. 

4.     Trade  School  for  Boys 

Within  the  next  two  years  establish  a  trade  school  for  boys, 
admitting  those  who  have  been  graduated  from  the  vocational  school, 
and  others  who  have  reached  the  age  of  sixteen  with  an  academic 
training  equivalent  to  that  of  the  sixth  grade.  This  school  should 
provide  for  specialization,  for  at  least  two  years,  in  some  one  of  a 

,'''  A  fuller  discussion  of  the  questions  involved  in  this  paragraph  is  given  on  pp. 
109-111. 


24  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

number  of  trades,  giving  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  time  to  shopwork 
and  drawing  in  the  trade  selected,  and  the  remaining  time  to  very 
closely  related  academic  subjects.  The  school  year  should  be  eleven 
months,  and  the  school  day  at  least  seven  hours. 

5.     Trade  School  for  Girls 

Establish  a  trade  school  for  girls,  admitting  those  who  have 
been  graduated  from  the  vocational  school,  and  others  who  have 
reached  the  age  of  fourteen  with  an  academic  training  equivalent  to 
that  of  the  sixth  grade.  Specialization  in  a  particular  trade  should 
be  offered,  about  two-thirds  of  the  time  being  devoted  to  handwork. 
Further  investigation  of  local  industrial  needs  is  necessary  to  deter- 
mine the  trades  to  be  taught. 

6.     Apprentice  Schools 

Investigate  the  feasibility  of  establishing  apprentice  schools  for 
trades  other  than  carpentry. 

7.  State  Legislation  for  Day  Continuation  Schools 
Endeavor  to  procure  the  enactment  of  a  law,  similar  to  the 
Ohio  law,  permitting  local  school  authorities  to  require  attendance 
in  day  continuation  schools  of  working  boys  and  girls  between  the 
ages  of  fourteen  and  eighteen,  or  at  least  fourteen  and  sixteen,  for 
at  least  six  hours  a  week. 

8.     Cooperation   with   Employers   to   Secure    Day   Continuation 

Schools 

Endeavor  to  secure  for  the  present  the  voluntary  cooperation 
of  employers  in  the  establishment  of  day  continuation  schools  in 
commercial  and  industrial  subjects,  for  the  years  fourteen  to  eight- 
een. The  work  in  these  schools  should  be  of  the  same  general 
character  as  that  in  the  continuation  schools  of  Munich,  Germany 
[see  pages  119  ff.  and  204  ff.],  and  in  the  recently  revised  curricu- 
lum of  the  Chicago  apprentice  school  [see  p.  112  ff.]. 

The  following  suggestions  may  be  drawn  from  the  experience 
of  other  cities  with  the  voluntary  cooperation  of  employers  in  day 
continuation  schools   [see  p.  128  ff.]. 

(a)  The  alternate  week  plan  of  cooperation  is  most  likely  to 
succeed  on  the  high-school  level,  and  in  connection  with  school 
instruction  distinctly  technical  in  character,  preparing  for  positions 
of  responsibility  above  that  of  the  actual  mechanic. 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  25 

(b)  The  experience  of  Cincinnati  and  Boston  [see  p.  200  ft.] 
shows  that  large  numbers  of  employers  are  willing  to  give  from 
four  to  fifteen  hours  a  week  to  their  employees,  on  full  pay,  for  day 
continuation  instruction  very  definitely  related  to  the  daily  work. 

(c)  Most  of  the  successful  efforts  at  cooperation  have  been 
made  through  associations  of  employers  and  workmen,  and  have 
been  accompanied  by  the  appointment  of  advisory  committees  of 
employers  and  unions  to  secure  their  continued  interest  and  their 
criticism  and  advice  on  the  work  of  the  schools. 

(d)  Provision  should  be  made  for  some  kind  of  supervision 
by  the  school  of  the  work  of  the  students  while  in  the  factory. 
There  are  two  reasons  why  this  should  be  done :  first,  to  enable  the 
school  to  relate  its  instruction  as  closely  as  possible  to  industrial 
needs  and  conditions ;  second,  to  afford  some  protection  to  the  stu- 
dent against  possible  exploitation  by  the  employer,  to  see  that  the 
student  advances  on  the  shop  side  of  his  training  as  rapidly  as  his 
ability  permits. 

9.     Legislation  to  Raise  the  Compulsory  Age  Limit 

After  vocational  training  is  provided  for  the  years  fourteen  to 
sixteen,  endeavor  to  procure  legislation  to  raise  the  compulsory  age 
limit  to  sixteen  years.  The  statistics  on  the  "  wasted  years  "  from 
fourteen  to  sixteen,  given  on  pages  33-30  of  this  report,  show  the 
great  need  for  such  legislation. 

10.     Technical  and  Trade  Courses  in  the  High  School 

In  the  "  manual  training  course  "17  in  the  technical  high  school 
the  time  devoted  to  shopwork  and  drawing  in  the  first  two  years 
should  be  increased  so  that  the  work  which  now  requires  three 
years  for  completion  may  be  done  in  the  first  two.  The  school  day 
should  be  lengthened  at  least  60  minutes,  thus  increasing  the  capacity 
of  the  shops  —  and  consequently  of  the  school  —  by  one-third. 

In  the  last  two  years  opportunity  should  be  given  for  specializa- 
tion in  a  particular  trade  or  technical  subject,  students  giving  from 
one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  school  time  to  the  major  subject. 
Opportunity  should  also  be  given,  in  the  last  two  years,  for  students 
intending  to  enter  college  engineering  courses  to  take  subjects  which 
meet  the  college  admission  requirements. 

17  The  name  of  the  course  should  be  changed  to  "  technical  course,"  to  conform  more 
closely  with  the  aim  of  the  course  recommended. 


26  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Provision  should  also  be  made  in  the  technical  high  school  for 
the  boy  who  has  been  graduated  from  the  elementary  school  before 
the  age  of  sixteen,  and  who  wishes  to  enter  the  trade  school  at  six- 
teen. Such  pupils  should  be  permitted  in  the  first  year  or  two  of 
the  high-school  course  to  give  more  than  the  usual  amount  of  time 
to  such  shopwork  as  will  prepare  directly  for  the  trade  school  — 
shop  work  of  the  same  general  character  as  that  recommended  for 
the  vocational  school  [type  1,  p.  15]. 

A  thoroughly  organized  effort  should  be  made  to  relate  the  sub- 
ject matter  of  the  academic  studies  closely  to  the  shop  work  and  to 
industrial  needs. 

The  trades  furnishing  appropriate  shopwork  for  the  "  manual 
training  "  course  may  be  classified  in  the  following  groups : 

Building  trades 

Carpentry,  plumbing,  steamfitting,  sheet-metal  drafting,  electrical 
construction,  tilesetting,  concrete  work,  painting  (house,  sign,  and  fresco), 
architectural  drawing 

Machine  trades 

Patternmaking,  forge,  foundry,  bench  and  vise  work,  machine 
practice 

Furniture  trades 

Cabinetmaking,  finishing,  upholstering 
Printing  trades 

Typesetting,  bookbinding,  lithography,  engraving 

Miscellaneous 

Stationary  engineering,  pharmaceutical  and  industrial  chemistry,  com- 
mercial design,  jewelry,  silversmithing,  pottery,  photography 

Parallel  to  the  existing  two-year  technical  college  course,  which 
offers  a  broad  training  for  engineering  students,  establish  in  the 
technical  high  school  more  highly  specialized  two-year  college  courses 
for  the  purpose  of  preparing  students  to  enter  the  higher  ranks  of 
industry  or  to  become  teachers  of  shopwork  or  drawing  in  technical 
schools.  If  the  industrial  Chicago  of  the  future  is  to  keep  the 
promise  of  its  past  the  schools  must  produce  efficient  leaders  below 
the  rank  of  engineers.  By  training  leaders  of  this  type  Chicago  will 
receive  a  quick  economic  return  on  her  educational  investment. 

11.     Cooperative  Courses  in  the  Technical  High  School 
The  cooperative  plan  of  alternate  weeks  in  school  and  factory, 
now  offered  in  the  fourth  year  of  the  Lane  Technical  High  School, 


GENERAL  SUMMARY  AND  RECOMMENDATIONS  27 

should  be  introduced  into  the  third  year  also,  and  should  be  offered 
in  all  technical  high  schools. 

12.     Industrial  Courses  for  Girls  in  the  High  School 

In  the  Flower  Technical  High  School  the  time  allotted  to  hand- 
work, including  drawing,  should  be  increased  so  as  to  occupy  from 
one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  school  time. 

Industrial  courses  for  girls,  permitting  specialization  in  the  last 
two  years,  should  also  be  offered  in  the  remaining  technical  high 
schools.  In  these  courses,  from  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  school 
time  should  be  given  to  handwork,  including  drawing.  Opportunity 
should  also  be  given  in  the  last  two  years  for  students  intending  to 
enter  college  technical  courses  to  take  subjects  necessary  to  meet  the 
college  entrance  requirements. 

The  following  occupations  are  suggested  as  furnishing  appro- 
priate material  for  the  industrial  courses  for  girls : 

Dressmaking,  millinery,  cloakmaking,  cooking,  catering,  lunch-room  man- 
agement, homemaking,  house  sanitation  and  management,  preparatory  coi 
for  nurses,  dietetics,  care  of  infants  and  invalids,  house  decorating  and  fitting, 
laundering,  jewelry,  silversmithing,  pottery,  photography,  commercial  design, 
bookbinding. 

The  subject  matter  of  the  academic  studies  should  be  closely 
related  to  the  handwork  and  to  industrial  needs. 

13.     Central  High  School  of  Commerce 

Establish  a  central  high  school  of  commerce,  and  secure  the 
cooperation  and  advice  of  representative  business  men  in  organ- 
izing a  course  of  study  and  in  providing  for  part  time  work  of 
students  in  business  offices.  The  commercial  high  schools  of  Boston 
and  Cleveland  [see  p.  245  ff.|  furnish  good  illustrations  of  the 
organization  and  type  of  work  here  in  mind. 

14.     Present  Commercial  Courses  in  the  High  School 

Improve  the  commercial  courses  now  offered  by  relating  them 
more  closely  to  present  business  needs  and  practices. 


28  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


PART  II 

INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION  IN  CHICAGO 
AND  IN  OTHER  CITIES 

By 

ERNEST  A.  WREIDT 
Special  Investigator  for  the  Sub-committee 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS  FOR 
INDUSTRIAL  EDUCATION 


This  chapter  presents  a  consideration  of  the  need  for  industrial 
education  in  Chicago  as  shown  (a)  by  the  elimination  of  pupils  from 
school,  (b)  by  the  number  of  over-age  or  retarded  children  in  the 
elementary  grades,  and  (c)  by  facts  relating  to  children  not  in  school 
between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen  years. 

Manual  training  and  industrial  training 

A  distinction  is  made  throughout  this  report  between  manual 
training  and  industrial  training,  in  the  sense  that  the  latter  aims 
primarily  and  definitely  at  preparation  for  industrial  vocations, 
whereas  the  former  aims  at  the  general  education  of  the  individual, 
through  the  hand,  whatever  his  vocation  is  to  be. 

In  presenting  the  need  for  industrial  training  it  is  not  the  purpose 
of  this  report  to  minimize  the  value  of  manual  training,  as  such,  in 
the  public  schools.  The  two  kinds  of  training,  as  defined  above,  are 
not  antagonistic.  Even  though  some  phases  of  the  actual  tradework 
done  in  present  industrial  schools  may  be  introduced  into  manual 
training  courses,  to  vitalize  and  enrich  those  courses,  they  may  still 
remain  general  in  character,  and  may  operate  for  the  general  educa- 
tion of  the  individual,  without  regard  to  the  specific  vocation  he  is 
to  follow.  The  term  industrial  training,  however,  is  reserved  for 
those  courses  which  lay  definite  hold  upon  the  vocational  motive  of 
pupils,  which  give  more  time  to  handwork  than  manual  training 
courses  give,  and  which  sooner  or  later  provide  specialized  and  inten- 
sive training  for  industrial  pursuits. 


THE  NEED  OE  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS 


29 


It  is,  then,  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to  show  that  the  vocational 
motive  should  be  introduced  into  the  school  by  way  of  industrial 
courses,  to  assist  in  retaining  pupils  longer  under  school  influence, 
to  help  arouse  the  interest  and  further  the  progress  of  retarded  or 
over-age  pupils,  and  to  reduce  the  waste  incident  to  the  years  four- 
teen to  sixteen  in  the  case  of  children  who  leave  school  at  fourteen. 
The  grades  in  which  the  greatest  need  exists  for  industrial  courses 
will  also  be  pointed  out. 

Elimination  of  pupils 

The  enrolment  statistics  of  the  Chicago  schools,  for  the  year 
1910,  show  (Fig.  1)  that  of  the  number  of  pupils  entering  the  first 
grade  only  57  per  cent  were  in  the  eighth  grade,  30  per  cent  in  the 
first  year  of  high  school,  and  only  6  per  cent  in  the  last  year. 


Fig.  I.1     Percentage  of  Pupils  Retained  in  Chicago  Public 
Schools,  According  to  the  School  Report,  1910 

100 
90 
80 

x>   70 
<d 

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23456781     EIII    IV 
Elementary  School  High  School 


1  The  percentages  are  based  on  total  enrolment.      The  method  of  computation 
used  in  Ayres,  Laggards  in  Our  Schools. 


30  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Fig.  1  shows,  in  other  words,  that  43  per  cent  of  the  pupils  who 
entered  the  first  grade  did  not  reach  the  eighth  grade,  27  per  cent 
did  not  reach  the  seventh  grade,  11  per  cent  did  not  reach  the  sixth 
grade,  and  94  per  cent  did  not  complete  the  high-school  course.2 

Since  only  86  per  cent  of  the  57  per  cent  enrolled  in  grade  eight 
were  promoted  to  the  high  school3,  the  number  who  completed  grade 
eight  in  1910  was  only  49  per  cent  of  the  number  who  entered  grade 
one. 

The  largest  gap  between  two  successive  grades  is  the  gap  between 
the  eighth  grade  and  the  first  year  of  high  school,  27  per  cent  of  the 
pupils  dropping  out  at  this  point.  In  an  effort  to  bridge  this  gap 
the  Board  of  Education  has  recently  provided  two-year  vocational 
courses  for  the  first  two  years  of  the  high  school.  It  is  quite  evident 
from  the  above  figures,  however,  that  these  vocational  courses,  with 
graduation  from  the  eighth  grade  as  a  prerequisite,  do  not  meet  the 
greatest  need  of  the  schools  as  shown  by  the  dropping  out  of  pupils, 
for  43  per  cent  of  the  pupils  leave  school  before  reaching  the  eighth 
grade.  The  greatest  need  for  vocational  courses  to  hold  pupils  in 
school  is  apparently  in  grades  6,  7  and  8,  which  is  the  field  occupied 
by  the  Farragut  Elementary  Industrial  School. 

The  Chicago  schools  are  neither  much  worse  nor  much  better 
than  the  schools  of  other  cities  with  respect  to  the  percentage  of 
pupils  retained.4  In  general  it  is  charged  that  the  large  percentage 
of  elimination  indicates  that  the  schools  are  not  suited  to  the  abil- 
ities and  interests  of  most  of  the  pupils.  The  following  statements 
give  further  evidence  of  this  condition  in  Chicago  schools.5 

(1)  The  average  pupil  in  the  first  five  grades  progresses  at  the 
rate  of  eight  grades  in  10.4  years. 

(2)  Over  69,000  pupils  (32  per  cent  of  the  total)  in  elementary 
schools  are  one  year  or  more  behind  grade.8  This  retardation  is 
greatest  in  grades  4,  5  and  6. 

(3)  Over  36,000  pupils  in  elementary  schools  (17.4  per  cent  of 
the  total)  repeat  the  work  of  a  grade  one  or  more  times.7 

2  The  method  of  computation  here  used  does  not  show  that  any  pupils  leave  school 
below  the  sixth  grade,  although  Table  6,  p.  3G,  shows  that  some  dn  leave  below  the  sixth 
grade. 

3  See  promotion  statistics,   School  Report,   1910. 

4  Average  percentages  for  63  cities,  given  in  Ayres,  op.  tit.,  are:  grade  6,  90  per 
cent;  grade  7,  71  per  cent;  grade  S,  51  per  cent;  grade  9,  40  per  cent;  grade  10,  19  per 
cent;    grade  11,  14  per  cent;    grade  12,  10  per  cent. 

5  Based  on  School  Report,  1909,  and  on  the  methods  of  computation  used  in  Ayres, 
op.  tit. 

«  See  Table  4,  p.  31. 

7  Counting  the  repeaters  in  the  first  five  grades  only. 


THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS 


31 


(4)  The  money  cost  of  this  repetition  is  over  $1 ,300, 000. 8 

(5)  There  is  15  per  cent  more  retardation  among  boys  than 
among  girls ;  there  are  23  per  cent  more  repeaters  among  boys  than 
among  girls ;  and  the  percentage  of  girls  in  grade  1  who  enter  the 
eighth  grade  is  15  per  cent  greater  than  the  percentage  of  boys. 

Table  4.    Number  and  Per  Cent  of  Over-age  Pupils  in  Chicago 
Elementary  Schools,  Based  on  School  Report.   19099 


One  year  or  more  over-age 

2  years 
or  more 
over-age 

3  years 
cr  more 
over-age 

4  years 

Number 

Per  cent 

over-age 

1 

2 

5,697 

7,946 

14.8 

26.1 

34.6 

41.71 

46.5k4.0 

43.8J 

34.2 

27.4 

2,050 
3,417 
5,146 
5,995 
5,890 
3,608 
1,841 
1,001 

28,948 

976 

1,542 

2,451 

2,547 

1,855 

855 

326 

156 

549 
835 

3 

11,340 

1,091 

4 
5 
6 

7 

11,8781 

12,426  33,902 

9,598j 

6,144 

740 

403 

135 

43 

8 

4,064 

25 

Total  . 

69,093 

32.7 

10,708 

3,821 

8  It   is  not  here  implied  that  this  amount  of  money   would  be  annually  saved   if  there 
were  no  repetition  in  the  schools. 

8  Over-age   here  refers  to  children   above   normal   age  for  whatever  cause.      Ayi 
shown  that  only  a  small  part  of  this  retardation   is  due  to  pupils  who  start  late  in  grade  1. 
This  is  also  shown  by  age  statistics  in  the  Chicago  School  Report,   1909.     The  ages  n  jarded 
as  normal   in  Table  4  are:    grade   1,   seven   years:     grade   2,   eight   years;      .     . 
fourteen   years.      It   has  been   shown   that   the   method   of   computation   here    us 
Ayres)    probably    minimizes    considerably    the    actual    percentage    of    retardation    in    Chicago 
schools  (see  Elementary  School  Teacher,  June.  1910,  p.    '' 


32 


REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


50 


40- 


> 

O 


30- 


g   20- 


^    10 


Over-e^e  pcpils 

id  Cbica.g-o  elen^e'nte.ry    schools 


T27426 

11,878 

9,5  98 

11,340 

6,144 

7,946 

4,064 

5,697 

Tote 

J- 

69,0 

93 

Grs.de    I 


n 


in 


IV 


v 


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YE 


vm 


It  is  evident  from  the  facts  given  that  the  Chicago  schools  give 
the  training  of  the  eight  grades  to  about  half  of  the  children  who 
enter.  It  is  not  safe  to  assume  that  most  of  the  children  who  leave 
school  before  completing  the  eighth  grade  do  so  because  parents  can 
not  afford  to  keep  them  in  school.  This  assumption  is  frequently 
made,  tacitly  or  explicitly,  but  it  is  not  supported  by  sufficient  evi- 
dence. Indeed,  the  evidence  that  exists  [see  pages  37,  38]  indicates 
that  very  likely  most  of  these  children  leave  school  because  the 
school  does  not  provide  the  kind  of  training  needed.  Since  the 
instruction  in  the  lower  grades  is  not  suited  to  the  abilities  and 
interests  of  the  average  child,  about  half  drop  out  at  the  age  of  four- 
teen, having  lost  a  year  or  more  since  entering.  It  is  evident  also 
that  instruction  in  the  grades  is  better  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  girls 
than  to  those  of  the  boys. 

The  large  number  of  over-age  children  in  grades  4,  5  and  6  points 
to  the  importance  of  introducing  vocational  courses  in  the  elementary 
grades.  These  retarded  children  are  the  ones  most  likely  to  drop 
out  to  go  to  work  when  they  reach  the  compulsory  age  limit  of 
fourteen  years.  The  elimination  begins,  as  shown  in  Fig.  1,  in 
grade  6.     Special  vocational  courses  beginning  below  grade  6  should 


THE  NEED  OE  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS 


33 


therefore  be  of  service  in  arousing  the  interest  of  the  retarded  pupils 
and  in  retaining  them  in  school. 

The  "  zi'asted  years,"  fourteen  to  sixteen 

The  need  for  industrial  education  is  closely  associated  with  the 
problem  of  the  "  wasted  years  "  of  childhood,  between  fourteen  and 
sixteen,  when,  as  is  shown  below,  large  numbers  leave  school  to  go 
to  work,  although  these  years  in  the  industries  offer  little  by  way  of 
financial  compensation,  or  by  way  of  vocational  training  and  advance- 
ment. Wide  interest  has  been  aroused  in  educational  circles  by  the 
statement  of  this  problem  as  made  in  the  report  of  the  {Massachu- 
setts Commission  on  Industrial  Education,  1906. 

Fig.  2  reveals  conditions  in  Chicago,  with  respect  to  these  years, 
even  worse  than  those  presented  in  the  Massachusetts  report.     In 

Fig.  210 


Nearly  three-fourths  of    these   children  left  school  in 

grade  7,  or  below  —  over 16,000 

Over  one-half  left  in  grade  6,  or  below  —  over     -     -  11,000 

Nearly  one-third  left  in  grade  5,  or  below  —  over     -  7,000 


23,415   CHILDREN 

between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  in  Chicago 

ARE  NOT  IN  SCHOOL 


Massachusetts  the  number  of  children  between  fourteen  and  sixteen 
years  of  age  who  were  not  in  school  was  about  25,000,  which  is 
about  seven-tenths  of  one  per  cent  of  the  total  population  of  the 
State,11  whereas  the  23,415  children  in  Chicago  represent  1.1  per  cent 
of  the  population  of  the  city.12  The  Chicago  children  also,  before 
leaving  school,  have  not  reached  so  high  a  grade  as  the  Massachu- 

10  Based  on  the  school  census  for  1910  (see  Table  5)  and  on  the  records  of  49,002 
children  receiving  age  and  school  certificates  (see  Table  6).  In  Fig.  2  the  assumption  is 
made  that  the  percentage  of  elimination  for  the  various  grades  as  shown  in  Table  6  holds 
true  also,  in  an  approximate  way,  for  the  23,415  children  not  in  school. 

11  The   population   in    1906   was  estimated    from  the    United    States   Census,    1900,    1910. 

12  United  States  Census  of  1910. 
4 


34 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


setts  children.13  Only  one-fourth  of  the  23,415  children  not  in 
school  in  Chicago  had  received  eighth-grade  training,  and  only  four 
per  cent  had  been  in  high  school.10 

What  becomes  of  these  children  in  Chicago?  Over  half  of  them 
(11,750)  were  idle  —  neither  in  school  nor  at  work  —  according  to 
the  census  enumerators  (Table  5).  The  rest  were  stated  to  be  at 
work,  36  per  cent  (4,223)  in  miscellaneous  occupations,  29  per  cent 
(3,384)  in  factories,  and  34  per  cent  (4,058)  in  stores  and  offices. 
However,  a  simple  bit  of  reasoning  shows  that  if  half  of  these  chil- 
dren were  idle  when  the  census  was  taken14  the  chances  are  that  the 
average  child  works  only  half  the  time  between  fourteen  and  six- 
teen years  of  age.  Stated  in  other  words,  the  average  boy  or  girl 
who  leaves  school  at  fourteen  years  of  age  is  doomed  to  one  year  of 
idleness  in  the  first  two  years  out  of  school. 

Table  5.15    Population  Between  Fourteen  and  Sixteen  Years 
of  Age  in  Chicago 


Number 

Per  cent 

Not  in  school 

Idle 

11,750 
11,665 

14.6 

At  work 

14.4 

Total .... 

23,415 

29.0 

In  school 

Public 

43,415 
13,636 

53.9 

Private 

16.9 

Total .... 

57,051 

70.8 

Total  population 

80,466 

13  The  percentages  for  Chicago  (from  Table  6)  and  for  Massachusetts  are: 


Per  cent  leaving  in 

Grade  7  or 
below 

Grade  G  or 
below 

Grade  5  or 

below 

71.7 
64.1 

53.4 
38.8 

31.4 

20.5 

14  The  school  census  of  1908  showed  that  over  59  per  cent  of  the  children  not  in  school 
between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  were  idle  when  the  census  was  taken. 

15  From  the  School  Census  Report,  1910,  on  which  Table  5  is  based,  the  following 
classification  of  children  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  may  be  made:  the 
number   in    school,    the    number   at    work,    and    the   number    "  not    in    school    for    30    days." 


THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS 


35 


All  of  these  children  left  school  to  go  to  work,  but  they  find  the 
industrial  field  already  flooded  with  juvenile  workers.  Very  few 
are  wanted  in  the  skilled  industries,  to  learn  a  trade,  until  they  are 
sixteen  or  eighteen  years  of  age.10  The  State  law  specifically  pro- 
hibits more  than  twenty  occupations  to  these  children  and  limits 
their  working  day  to  eight  hours.  They  have  little  or  no  manual 
skill  to  offer  the  employer  and  they  have  received  very  little  school 
training  (Fig.  3).  Employers  in  all  grades  of  industry  show  an 
increasing  aversion  to  employ  children  under  sixteen  years  of  age.17 

Fig.  3 


32% 
Leave 

in 

Their  School  Training*  is 
Inadequate 

21% 

Leave 
in 

2\% 
Leave 

in 

19% 

Leave 
in 

3% 

reach 

Grade 
5 

orbelooi 


Grade 
6 


Grade 

7 


Gra.de 
8 


High 
School 


Based  on  36,464  Age  and  School  Certificates  1903-06 


The  Massachusetts  investigation  bears  out  the  statement  that  most 
of  these  children  flit  about  from  one  juvenile  occupation  to  another, 
with  intermittent  idleness  for  weeks  at  a  time,  all  of  which  serves  to 
develop  "  that  unsteadiness  of  purpose,  irresponsibility  of  character, 

The  number  idle  in  Table  5  is  the  number  given  in  the  census  as  "  not  in  school  for  30 
days."  Since  the  State  law  requires  children  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  to  attend 
school,  if  not  at  work,  it  is  assumed  that  the  children  "  not  in  school  for  30  days  "  had 
either  been  at  work  but  were  idle  when  the  census  was  taken,  or  had  been  excused  from 
school  to  seek  work  and  had  not  yet  found  a  place.  The  School  Census  Report  [p.  6] 
shows  that  of  16,672  children  holding  certificates  only  3.1  per  cent  (mainly  girls)  were 
helping  at  home. 

18  See  p.  46.  See  also  Report  of  New  York  State  Bureau  of  Labor  Statistics,  190S, 
Part  I,   Industrial  Training. 

"Chicago  School  Report,  1908,  p.  285. 


36 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


and   irregularity  of   habit  which   is  the   undoing  of   manhood  and 
womanhood." 

Table  6.18  Grades  of  49,002  Children  Receiving  Age  and  School 
Certificates  Between  Fourteen  and  Sixteen  Years  of  Age 


1903- 

•1906 

1908 

-1909 

No. 

Per  cent 

No. 

Per  cent 

From  grade  519,  and  below 

From  grade  6 

From  grade  7 

11,803 
7,716 
6,984 

26,503 

7,660 

1,370 

931 

32.3 
21.1 
19.1 

3,630 
2,579 
2,433 

8,642 

2,278 
770 
848 

28.9 
20.6 
19.4 

Total  below  grade  8 

From  grade  8 

From  high  school 

Evening  schools  and  unclassified 

72.6 

21.0 
3.7 
2.6 

68.9 

18.1 
6.1 

6.7 

Total  certificates  issued. .  .  . 

36,464 

12,538 

The  eagerness  with  which  children  leave  school  to  go  to  work  is 
shown  in  the  fact  that  of  the  12,538  children  receiving  age  certificates 
in  1908-9,  3,259  or  25.9  per  cent  were  not  more  than  14  years  1 
month  of  age,  and  6,660  children,  or  53.1  per  cent  were  not  over  14 
years  6  months  of  age.20  These  children  do  not  wait  long  to  leave 
school  after  they  become  old  enough  to  go  to  work. 

That  few  children  return  to  school  after  receiving  age  certificates 
is  shown  by  an  investigation  of  16,672  children  holding  certificates. 
Qf  this  number  only  2,947,  or  17  per  cent  were  in  school,21  appar- 
ently compelled  to  return  to  school  by  the  attendance  officers  who 
found  the  children  neither  in  school  nor  at  work. 

On  page  277  of  this  report  it  is  estimated  that  boys  between  four- 
teen and  sixteen  years  of  age  in  Chicago  earn  on  the  average  about 
$4.25  a  week.    The  United  States  census  of  manufacturers  for  1905 

18  From  School  Reports,  1906,  1909. 

19  The  grades  indicated  were  not  necessarily  completed  by  all  pupils. 

20  School  Report,   1909,  p.  81. 

21  School  Census  Report,  1910,  p.  6.  The  investigation  covered  a  period  of  lyi  years. 
The  number  who  had  moved  or  left  the  city  is  subtracted  from  the  total  investigated. 
Principals  state  that  some  children  remain  in  school  after  receiving  age  certificates, 
engaging  in  some  gainful  occupation  outside  of  school  hours.  It  is  practically  impossible 
to  find  out  what  this  number  is,  but  it  is  probably  very  small.  That  most  or  all  of  this 
number  probably  do  leave  school  soon  after  receiving  certificates  is  shown  by  the  investi- 
gation of  the  16,672  children  referred  to.  It  has  also  been  shown  that  work  in  vacations 
tends  to  lessen  the  school  interest  of  pupils  and  to  increase  the  elimination  (see  Report  on 
Condition  of  Woman  and  Child  Wage-earners  in  the  United  States,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  55,  60, 
Bureau  of  Labor,  Washington,  1910). 


THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS  37 

shows  that  boys  and  girls  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  in  the  manu- 
facturing industries  of  Chicago  earn  an  average  of  $195  a  year,  less 
than  $4  a  week.  These  wages  are  for  the  time  the  children  are  at 
work,  but,  as  stated  before,  the  chances  are  that  the  average  child 
works  only  half  the  time  during  these  years,  which  reduces  his  earn- 
ing power  to  about  $2  a  week  for  the  period. 

Why,  then,  do  these  children  leave  school  ?  When  this  question 
was  asked  of  205  boys  in  connection  with  the  investigation  reported 
on  page  277,  over  90  per  cent  said  they  were  tired  of  school  and 
could  have  remained  in  school  so  far  as  their  financial  circumstances 
were  concerned.  Fully  75  per  cent  said  they  would  have  continued 
in  school  if  trade  instruction  had  been  offered. 

The  Massachusetts  investigation,  covering  5,423  children  and 
3,157  families,  disclosed  the  following  interesting  facts  with  refer- 
ence to  children  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  who  were 
not  in  school  :22 

76  per  cent  of  the  families  were  financially  able  to  give  indus- 
trial school  training  to  their  children  ; 

66  per  cent  of  the  children  could  have  continued  in  school 
had  they  wanted  to ; 

55  per  cent  of  the  families  declared  they  would  send  their 
children  to  trade  schools,  if  such  schools  should  be  provided. 

Still  further  evidence  that  many  pupils  who  leave  the  public 
school  would  be  attracted  by  distinctly  vocational  training  may  be 
found  in  the  large  number  enrolled  in  correspondence  and  other 
private  vocational  schools  conducted  as  business  undertakings  for 
profit.  Fig.  4  gives  an  estimate  of  the  enrolment  and  the  amount 
of  tuition  paid  in  private  commercial  and  industrial  schools  located 
in  Chicago  and  conducted  for  profit.  The  figures  given  do  not 
include  the  enrolment  of  Chicago  students  in  correspondence  schools, 
or  in  Y.  M.  C.  A.  and  parochial  schools. 


22  From  an  article  by  Susan  M.  Kingsbury  in  Charities  and  the  Commons.  October  5, 
1907.  The  statements  on  the  financial  condition  of  the  families  are  based  on  careful 
investigation  and  on  definite  standards  of  income  and  expenditure. 


38  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Fig.  4.     Enrolment  in  Private  Vocational  Schools  and  in 
Public  High  Schools  of  Chicago23 


•J*111""              -                 ■  -        --  ■  ■                                                      "'""" 

There  are  at  least 

There  are  only 

°"t 

i 

1 

19,000  STUDENTS 

17,781  STUDENTS 

i 

| 

in 
1        Private    Commercial    Schools 
and  800  in 
Private  Industrial  Schools 

in  all 
Public     High     Schools 

in  Chicago 

1 

in  Chicago,  and  at  least 

$1,485,000 

and  only 

1 

$1,114,526 

i 

is  paid  for 

TUITION 

g 

is  expended  for 

1 

MAINTENANCE 

| 

A— i — mil  mi  W|  »im«  mm  m* mmmmmma mm na 

i    —■■—.—.» 

-4 

The  large  number  of  students  who  are  willing  to  pay  for  instruc- 
tion in  these  private  schools  shows  in  a  convincing  way  the  strong 
demand  for  practical  training  in  commercial  and  industrial  pursuits. 
It  is  shown  in  Chapters  X  and  XIII  that  a  large  number  of  children 
leave  the  public  high  and  elementary  schools  of  Chicago  to  enter 
private  business  colleges.  In  the  case  of  students  from  other  cities 
an  additional  cost  for  living  expenses  is,  of  course,  involved. 

That  a  year  or  more  in  the  ordinary  school  would  be  of  value 
to  the  children  who  leave  at  the  age  of  fourteen  is  shown  by  tests 
in  practical  arithmetic,  English,  etc.,  given  to  655  boys  who  left 
school  in  grades  from  the  high  school  down  to  the  sixth  grade.24 
These  tests,  while  showing  a  deplorable  deficiency  in  most  of  the 
boys,  nevertheless  exhibit  a  consistent  superiority  of  the  upper  grade 
boy  over  the  boy  from  the  next  lower  grade. 

But  the  ordinary  school,  as  shown  by  the  statistics  given,  does 
not  attract  and  hold  the  majority  of  the  children  until  they  have  com- 
pleted the  eighth  grade.  That  intermediate  industrial  schools  and 
courses,  giving  definite  and  practical  preparation  for  vocations, 
would  attract  large  numbers,  may  be  easily  inferred  from  the  facts 
which  have  been  presented.     That  employers  and  organized  labor 

23  Based  on  total  annual  enrolment  in  each  case.  The  figures  for  the  public  schools 
are  taken  from  the  Superintendent's  Report,  1910,  and  refer  to  day  schools  only.  The 
figures  for  the  private  schools  are  obtained  from  the  estimates  for  commercial  schools 
given  in  Chapter  X,  and  from  the  two  industrial  schools  described  on  pp.  142,  143.  It  is, 
of  course,  not  assumed  that  the  19,800  students  in  Fig.  4  include  only  Chicago  students  of 
public  school  age. 

24  See  p.  272  ff. 


THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS  39 

in  Chicago  would  welcome  such  schools  for  children  between  four- 
teen and  sixteen  years  of  age  is  shown  in  Fig.  5. 

Fig.  523 


y 

148  employers  92  trade  unions 

having  and  having 

101,449  employees  97,000  membership 

I  in 

Chicago 
are    in    favor  of 

Industrial  Schools  for  these  Children 

I 

fciniiutiiii(tluiiiiiiiiiioiiiiiiimiiniiiiiiimiianni!itiiiitiii]Hi:iiinrjiii:.(iiiL(n  minim::.!!!1  mint: t:i  i.m  n't::ii  ■  .•■  tw imc  .n  mimiM  mnin ■■  mn " ;: 


Such  schools  and  courses,  if  they  are  to  attract  pupils  and 
parents,  and  if  they  are  to  win  the  confidence  of  employers  and 
workmen,  should  be  distinctly  and  frankly  practical  in  their  aim  and 
work,  not  excluding,  however,  academic  instruction  closely  related 
to  industrial  needs.  Experiments  in  other  cities  present  the  three 
following  types  of  schools  and  courses  which  have  been  developed 
in  an  effort  to  meet  this  need.20 

1.  Optional  industrial  courses  in  grades  6  to  8,  inclusive,  parallel 
to  existing  grammar  school  courses,  and  not  interfering  with  gradu- 
ation from  the  elementary  school  in  the  usual  time. 

2.  Industrial  schools  and  courses  for  elementary  school  pupils 
thirteen  to  fifteen  years  of  age,  which  do  not  offer  the  possibility 
of  graduation  in  the  usual  time. 

3.  Independent  industrial  schools,  offering  trade  training  of  a 
preparatory  kind  to  children  fourteen  to  sixteen  years  of  age  from 
grade  6,  or  above. 

Conclusions 

The  opinion  is  common  in  educational  circles  that  the  eight 
grades  of  the  elementary  school  represent  the  minimum  school  train- 
ing that  should  be  required  of  all  children  not  incapacitated  by 

25  Based  on  Table  10,  p.  47,  and  on  Table  10,  p.  75.  The  02  trade  unions,  b<.  i  -  - 
per  cent  of  the  number  of  unions  answering  the  question,  may  be  said  to  represent  a 
membership  of  at  least  97,000. 

20  See  Chapter  VII. 


40  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

nature  for  receiving  that  training.  It  is  indeed  humiliating  when 
one  realizes  that  only  half  of  the  children  in  the  public  schools  of 
Chicago  receive  this  minimum.  Those  who  leave  school  with  less 
than  this  minimum  enter  the  industries  under  the  handicap  of  an 
insufficient  school  training.  The  first  two  years  out  of  school  for 
those  who  leave  at  fourteen  are  at  present  largely  wasted,  both  to 
the  child  and  to  the  industries  —  to  the  child  because  he  finds  little 
or  no  opportunity  for  training  or  advancement  in  the  industries, 
because  he  receives  little  or  no  general  training  of  a  beneficial  kind 
and  may  be  subject  to  much  harmful  influence  incident  to  idleness 
and  shifting  occupation ;  to  the  industries  because  children  are  not 
prepared  to  take  positions  as  trained  workers  when  they  are  old 
enough  to  do  skilled  work.  But  these  years  could  be  made  of  great 
value  for  school  training  along  vocational  lines,  and  there  are  good 
reasons  for  believing  that  many  children  who  now  leave  school  at 
fourteen  could  be  retained  in  school  by  such  training. 

To  the  school  is  thus  presented  the  opportunity  to  extend  its 
influence  over  a  portion  of  the  community  not  hitherto  reached.  By 
appealing  to  the  vocational  motive,  the  school  may  provide  that 
training  in  skill  which  the  industries  themselves  no  longer  adequately 
provide,27  and  it  may  at  the  same  time  continue  the  general  educa- 
tion of  the  children  on  the  academic  side  by  quickening  their  intelli- 
gence and  interest  in  the  active  life  they  are  to  enter. 

Whatever  may  be  the  cause,  the  fact  remains  that  large  numbers 
of  children  leave  school  at  various  points  in  the  course.  The  school 
can  hardly  be  considered  as  doing  its  full  duty,  as  a  social  institu- 
tion, unless  it  provides  for  each  pupil,  before  he  leaves  school,  that 
training  which  best  fits  him  for  the  life  he  is  to  enter.  The  condi- 
tions and  needs  of  the  life  he  is  to  enter  must  be  studied  by  the 
school,  and  a  curriculum  should  be  provided  which  does  not  assume 
that  all  pupils  will  take  the  complete  course  and  go  on  through  col- 
lege, but  which  offers  at  various  appropriate  points  finishing  courses 
which  prepare  definitely  for  a  life  career. 

It  should  be  clear,  from  the  statistics  given,  that  the  greatest  need 
for  such  finishing  courses,  and  for  vocational  courses  to  hold  pupils 
in  school,  is  in  the  intermediate  grades,  for  the  years  twelve  to  six- 
teen. Technical  education  in  the  high  school  is,  of  course,  impor- 
tant, but  it  does  not  reach  the  large  number  of  children  who  never 

27  The  meagerness  of  provisions  in  the  industries  of  Chicago  for  training  skilled 
workers  is  shown  in  Chapter  III. 


THE  NEED  OF  CHICAGO  SCHOOLS  41 

enter  the  high  school,  but  who  enter  the  industries  under  the  handi- 
cap of  an  insufficient  school  training.  It  is  much  more  important  that 
all  children  should  receive  the  equivalent  of  an  eighth  grade  training 
than  that  a  few  more  than  at  present  should  enter  the  high  school. 
Industrial  training  of  an  introductory  or  rudimentary  kind  should 
begin  at  the  age  of  twelve  or  thirteen,  in  whatever  grades  the  chil- 
dren of  that  age  may  be  found,  in  order  to  reach  them  before  they 
have  an  opportunity  to  leave  school.  Such  industrial  courses,  from 
two  to  four  years  in  length,  should  serve  as  finishing  courses  for 
those  who  must  enter  the  industries  at  an  early  age.  It  is  the  dis- 
tinctive opportunity  of  the  high  school,  and  therefore  its  duty,  to 
take  advantage  of  the  superior  academic  attainments  of  its  pupils 
by  training  mainly  for  positions  above  that  of  the  actual  mechanic, 
for  the  directive  positions  in  the  industries.  Such  technical  courses 
in  the  high  school,  if  they  are  true  finishing  courses  preparing 
definitely  for  a  life  career  after  high  school,  should  be  of  service  in 
retaining  in  the  high  school  many  pupils  who  now  leave  before 
completing  the  course.  On  the  lower  academic  levels  the  indus- 
trial courses  should  provide  for  the  actual  mechanic  of  the  future 
the  training  in  skill  which  is  needed  in  the  industries,  and  should 
give  as  much  of  the  technical  instruction  in  applied  science,  mathe- 
matics, knowledge  of  materials,  etc.,  as  the  academic  attainments  of 
the  pupils  will  permit.  Such  elementary  courses  should  give  that 
all-around  training  in  skill  which  is  not  generally  obtainable  in  the 
industries,  and  should  endeavor  to  develop  such  a  degree  of  indus- 
trial intelligence  and  adaptability  as  will  make  rapid  advancement 
possible  after  work  is  begun. 


42  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER    III 

CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 
OF  CHICAGO 

AND 

THE  ATTITUDE  OF  EMPLOYERS 


To  ascertain  the  need  for  industrial  education  as  shown  by  con- 
ditions in  the  skilled  industries  of  Chicago,  and  as  shown  by  the 
attitude  of  the  employers  toward  industrial  schools,  the  following 
schedule  of  questions1  was  sent  to  employers  in  selected  industries  in 
the  city : 

1.  From  what  source  do  you  obtain  your  skilled  employees  —  employees 
of  high-grade  skill,  and  of  medium  or  low-grade  skill? 

(a)  Are  they  trained  in  your  own  establishment? 

(b)  Are  they  obtained  from  other  sources  ? 

If  so,  what  are  these  sources  ? 

2.  Do  you  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  or  in  training  skilled  employees? 

3.  Do  you  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  or  in  training  employees  to  act  as 
foremen  or  department  heads  ? 

4.  Would  the  efficiency  and  future  opportunities  of  your  employees  be 
increased  if  they  received  a  training  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen 
in  a  general  public  industrial  or  preparatory  trade  school  which  aims  to  give 
a  knowledge  of  materials,  shop  mathematics  and  fundamental  industrial 
methods,  and  some  ideas  of  industrial  organization,  but  does  not  teach  a  spe- 
cial trade  ?    

5.  Would  practical  day  trade  schools,  giving  a  specialized  and  intensive 
training  of  one  year  or  more  after  the  age  of  sixteen,  help  to  meet  the  prob- 
lem of  skilled  employees  in  your  business  ? 

G.  Would  practical  evening  or  half-time  schools  be  of  value  in  helping 
unskilled  workers,  or  those  of  low-grade  skill,  to  advance  to  positions  requir- 
ing high-grade  skill  ? 

7.  To  what  extent  could  your  business  be  advanced  if  more  skilled 
workers  were  available,  and  if  greater  industrial  or  business  intelligence  pre- 
vailed among  foremen  or  department  heads  ? 

1  The  questions  were  suggested  by  similar  questions  given  in  the  Report  of  the  Bureau 
of  Labor  Statistics,  New  York  State,  1908,  Part  I,  Industrial  Training.  Some  of  the 
questions  are  taken  verbatim  from  that  report. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  43 

8.     Total  number  of  employees  in  the  manufacturing  department : 
male ;  female 

Number  of  employees  under  sixteen  years  of  age : 
male ;   female 


Employees  of  Low-grade  Skill 

9.  Number  of  employees  of  medium  or  low-grade  skill,  operating  one 
machine,  or  carrying  on  one  process,  requiring  small  degree  of  skill : 

male ;   female 

Weekly  wages  of  this  class,  not  counting  overtime : 

Male  Female 

Highest    

Lowest  

Wages  of  greatest  number 

10.  Number  of  employees  being  trained  for  work  in  this  low-grade  class 
under  the  age  of  eighteen  years : 

male ;   female 

Employees  of  High-grade  Skill 

11.  Number  of  employees  of  high-grade  skill  with  knowledge  of  all 
processes,  or  a  number  of  processes,  or  high  skill  in  one  process : 

male ;   female 

Weekly  wages  of  this  class,  not  counting  overtime : 

Male  Female 

Highest    

Lowest   

Wages  of  greatest  number 

12.  Number  of  employees  being  trained  for  work  in  this  high-grade  class 
under  the  age  of  eighteen  years  : 

male ;   female 

13.  If  you  have  a  system  of  training  employees  for  skilled  work  or  for 
supervisory  work,  please  give  some  description  of  it 

The  industries  selected  for  investigation  were  on  the  whole  those 
requiring  a  comparatively  large  amount  of  skilled  work.  In  addition, 
the  packing  houses  were  included  because  of  the  importance  of  this 
industry  in  Chicago,  although  it  requires  a  relatively  small  amount 
of  skill.  One  manufacturing  confectionery,  one  wall-paper  mill. 
and  one  mail-order  house  were  also  canvassed,  and  are  included  in 
some  of  the  following  tables  under  the  heading  "  miscellaneous." 

As  a  rule  those  establishments  were  selected,  in  a  given  industry, 
which   employed  the   largest   number   of   persons.     Reports   were 


44 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


received  from  181  establishments,  having  111,606  employees,2  clas- 
sified in  ten  industrial  groups,  as  follows : 

Table  7.     Number  of  Establishments  Replying  and  Number 
of  Employees  Therein,  by  Industries 


INDUSTRY 


1 .  Industries  employing  mainly 

women 

2.  Men's  clothing 

3.  Iron,    steel    and    electrical 

products 

4.  Contractors  and  builders. .  . 

5.  Furniture,  office  fixtures. .  .  . 

6.  Printing 

7.  Jewelry  manufacturing 

8.  Packing  houses 

9.  Pianos,  musical  instruments. 
10.  Miscellaneous 

Total 


Number 
of  estab- 
lishments 


36 
9 

49 

17 

10 

35 

11 

7 

4 

3 


1813 


Number  of  employees 


Male 


1,591 

2,837 

49,222 

5,326 

4,330 

3,907 

279 

19,911 
1,164 
4,495 


93,062 


Female 


4,092 
2,240 

4,863 
32 

356 

1,182 

118 

1,778 

78 

3,805 


18,544 


Total 


5,683 
5,077 

54,085 

5,358 

4,686 

5,089 

397 

21,689 
1,242 
8.300 


111,606 


Method  of  obtaining  reports 

Except  a  few  establishments  visited  by  the  committee's  repre- 
sentative, the  reports  were  obtained  by  correspondence.  The  Chi- 
cago Association  of  Commerce,  through  the  chairmen  of  its  various 
trade  sub-divisions,  assisted  in  selecting  the  industries  to  be  can- 
vassed. These  chairmen  were  intimately  acquainted  with  conditions 
in  their  own  trade  sub-divisions  and  were  therefore  able  to  give 
reliable  information  as  to  the  largest  establishments  in  their  own 
sub-divisions  and  as  to  the  firms  employing  the  largest  percentage  of 
skilled  workmen.  This  information  was  secured  by  the  committee's 
representative  in  a  personal  interview  with  the  chairmen  of  the  sub- 
divisions. 

2  Omitting  the  13,858  employees  in  the  group  of  contractors  and  builders  and  in  the 
one  mail-order  house,  the  remaining  total  number  of  employees  represents  40.6  per  cent 
of  all  employees  in  manufacturing  industries  of  Chicago,  according  to  the  United  States 
Census  of  1905.  Of  the  18  leading  manufacturing  industries  of  Chicago,  according  to  the 
1905  Census,  all  are  represented  in  this  investigation  except  the  following  (numbers  indi- 
cate rank  in  value  of  products):  6,  steam  railroad  cars;  7,  bakery  products;  9,  malt 
liquors;  12,  coffee  and  spice;  15,  illuminating  and  heating  gas;  16,  smelting  and  refining 
of  lead. 

3  Four  establishments  in  group  1  did  not  report  the  number  of  employees;  also  1  in 
group  2,  2  in  group  3,  4  in  group  4,  1  in  group  6,  and  1  in  group  8.  In  some  of  the  fol- 
lowing tables  the  different  numbers  given  for  the  total  employees  in  a  particular  industry, 
or  grouping  of  industries,  are  explained  by  the  fact  that  all  establishments  replying  from 
that  industry,  or  group,  did  not  answer  all  the  questions  in  the  schedule  submitted. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


45 


Each  letter  addressed  to  firms  in  the  Chicago  Association  of 
Commerce  was  accompanied  by  an  official  letter  from  the  Associa- 
tion urging  the  attention  of  employers  to  the  schedule  of  questions. 
A  personal  letter  from  the  chairmen  of  the  trade  sub-divisions  or 
from  other  individuals  closely  associated  with  the  firms  addressed 
was  also  sent  in  practically  all  cases.  In  addition  a  general  state- 
ment of  the  purpose  and  scope  of  the  investigation  was  enclosed. 
The  replies  received  represent  about  55  per  cent  of  the  number  of 
firms  addressed. 

General  summary 

To  give  a  glance  at  the  general  results  of  the  investigation,  the 
replies  from  the  181  establishments  are  summarized  in  Tables  8,  9, 
10,  and  11,  below.  The  detailed  figures  are  presented  in  Tables  12 
to  18,  inclusive. 

Table  8  shows  that  41.1  per  cent  of  the  employees  are  in  the  class 
of  low-grade  or  medium  skill,  and  27.7  per  cent  are  in  the  highly 
skilled  class.  The  number  reported  as  unskilled  is  31.1  per  cent  of 
the  total. 

Table  8.    Number  of  Employees,  with  Per  Cent  of  Total,  in 
Various  Classes,  for  All  Establishments  Answer- 
ing These  Questions  Completely 


Male 

Female 

Total 

Total 
employees 
in  estab- 
lishments 
answering 

the 

questions 

(See  Note  3) 

Per   cent 

of  total 

employees 

Number  under  16 

530 

864 
886 

684 

784 
274 

1,214 

1,648 
1,160 

99,141 

1.2 

Number     under     18     being 
trained : 

(a)  low-grade  skill 

(b)  high-grade  skill 

2.2 
1.5 

Total 

Number  of  skilled  employees: 

(a)  low-grade  skill 

(b)  high-grade  skill 

1,750 

29,898 
22,403 

1,058 

6,875 
2,407 

2.S08 

36,773 

24,810 

75,343 

3.7 

41.1 
27  7 

Total 

Number    of    unskilled    em- 
ployees   

52,301 
22,070 

9,282 
5,680 

61,583 
27,750 

89,333 
89,333 

68. S 
31.1 

46 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


That  few  children  under  sixteen  years  of  age  are  wanted  in  the 
skilled  industries  of  Chicago  and  that  few  under  eighteen  are  being 
trained  for  skilled  work  is  shown  by  the  following  argument,  assum- 
ing the  firms  in  Table  8  to  be  fairly  representative,  in  these  respects, 
of  the  skilled  industries  of  Chicago. 

From  Table  8  the  number  of  children  under  sixteen  is  1.2  per 
cent  of  the  total  number  of  employees.  The  population  of  Chicago 
between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  is  more  than  4.9  per  cent 
of  the  total  population  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  over.4  The  ratio 
of  1.2  to  4.9  is  less  than  yA.  It  is,  then,  safe  to  say  that,  of  the  age- 
group  fourteen  to  sixteen,  the  skilled  industries  employ  less  than 
one-fourth  of  the  persons  available  to  those  industries  under  a 
normal5  distribution  of  age-groups. 

Similarly,  the  number  under  eighteen  being  trained  is  3.7  per 
cent  of  the  total  number  of  employees.  The  population  in  Chicago 
between  fourteen  and  eighteen  years  of  age  is  more  than  9.1  per 
cent  of  the  total  population  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  over.4  The 
ratio  of  3.7  to  9.1  is  a  little  over  2-5.  It  is,  then,  safe  to  say  that, 
of  the  age-group  fourteen  to  eighteen,  the  skilled  industries  are 
training  only  a  little  over  two-fifths  of  the  persons  available  to  those 
industries  under  a  normal7'  distribution  of  age-groups.  This  is  for 
positions  of  low-grade  skill  as  well  as  for  positions  of  high-grade 
skill.  For  the  latter  positions  alone,  the  number  under  eighteen 
being  trained  (1.5  per  cent  of  the  total  employees)  is  less  than  one- 
sixth  of  the  persons  available  under  a  normal6  distribution  of  age- 
groups. 

According  to  Table  9,  74.7  per  cent  of  the  firms  report  difficulty 
in  obtaining  or  in  training  skilled  employees,  and  63.1  per  cent  report 
difficulty  in  obtaining  or  in  training  foremen. 

Table  9.    Summary  of  Replies  to  Questions  2  and  3 


"Yes" 

"No" 

Per  cent  "Yes" 

Question  2 

133 
106 

45 

62 

74.7 

63.1 

Total 

239 

107 

69.0 

*  Based  on  the  school  census,  1910,  and  on  the  United  States  census,  1900,  1910. 

6  "  Normal  "  in  the  sense  of  corresponding  to  the  age  distribution  of  the  total  popu- 
lation fourteen  years  of  age  and  over.  The  ratios  would  be  a  little  over  one-fourth,  one- 
half  and  one-fourth,  respectively,  if  the  number  of  females  in  the  groups  referred  to  in 
Table  8  were  equal  to  the  number  of  males. 


CONDITIOXS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


47 


As  a  somewhat  definite  measure  of  the  degree  of  difficulty  expe- 
rienced in  obtaining  skilled  employees,  93.7  per  cent  of  the  firms 
report  (Table  13,  page  52)  that  their  business  could  be  advanced 
in  amounts  varying  from  10  to  100  per  cent,  or  more,  if  more  skilled 
workers  were  available.  Fifty-eight  per  cent  of  the  firms  train  few 
or  none  of  their  own  skilled  employees  (Table  14). 

That  industrial  schools  for  the  years  fourteen  to  sixteen  would 
be  of  value  to  the  industries  is  asserted  by  88  per  cent  of  the  firms 
(Table  10).  The  number  of  employees  in  these  establishments  is 
101,449,  or  91.9  per  cent  of  the  total.  Ninety  per  cent,  having  93,398 
employees,  are  in  favor  of  trade  schools  after  the  age  of  16;  86.4 
per  cent  favor  evening  schools. 


Table  10.    Summary  of  Replies  to  Questions  4,  5  and  6 


"Yes" 

"No" 

Per  cent  "Yes" 

No.  of 
establish- 
ments 

Total 

employees 

therein 

No.  of 

establish- 
ments 

Total 
employees 

therein 

Of  the 

establish- 
ments 

Of  the 

total 

employees 

Question  4 

Question  5 

Question  6 

148 
144 

147 

101,449 
93,398 

17 
1G 
23 

8,837 
13,915 

88.0 
90.0 
86.4 

91.9 
87.0 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  the  replies  of  Chicago  employers  to 
questions  2,  4,  5  and  6  with  the  replies  to  the  same  questions  of 
nearly  900  employers  in  similar  industries  in  the  State  of  New 
York.6  Table  11  shows  that  the  percentage  of  employers  reporting 
difficulty  in  obtaining  skilled  employees  (question  2)  is  very  much 
greater  in  Chicago  than  in  New  York  State.  The  percentage  of 
employers  favoring  the  three  types  of  industrial  schools  (questions 
4,  5  and  6)  is  also,  in  each  case,  much  greater  in  Chicago.  Since 
the  State  of  New  York  has  deemed  it  necessary  to  establish  a 
tern  of  industrial  schools  under  State  subsidy,  Chicago  is,  by  com- 
parison, somewhat  backward  in  making  provisions  to  meet  the 
greater  need  and  to  respond  to  the  more  favorable  attitude  of 
employers  toward  industrial  schools. 

6  Report  of  New  York  State  Bureau  of  Labor  Statis  Part  I.  p.  14  if.     In  this 

comparison  the  New  York  industries  included  are:  metals,  wood,  printing,  clothing,  build- 
ing. The  industries  omitted  from  the  Chicago  investigation  ate:  packing  houses,  miscel- 
laneous.    The  questions  used  for  the  comparison  are  the   same  in  both  in\ 


48 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Table  11.     Comparison  of  Replies  of  Chicago  and  New  York 
State  Employers  to  Certain  Questions 


Per  cent  "Yes 


Question  2 
Question  4 
Question  5 
Question  6 


The  detailed  results 

Table  12  shows  the  supply  of  skilled  labor  and  the  weekly  wages 
most  frequently  paid,  classified  by  industries.  The  data  on  the  sup- 
ply of  skilled  labor  are  obtained  from  the  answers  to  the  following 
two  questions : 

Question  2.  Do  you  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  or  in  training 
skilled  employees? 

Question  3.  Do  you  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  or  in  training 
employees  to  act  as  foremen  or  department  heads? 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


19 


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CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


51 


The  totals  in  Table  12  show  that  74.7  per  cent  of  the  establish- 
ments have  difficulty  in  obtaining  skilled  employees,  and  that  63.1 
per  cent  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  foremen  or  department  heads. 

In  only  three  of  the  industries  do  a  majority  of  the  firms  answer 
"  no  "  to  question  2 ;  men's  neckware,  etc.,  packing  houses,  and  the 
three  miscellaneous  establishments.  To  question  3  a  majority 
answered  "  no  "  in  only  five  industries ;  men's  neckwear,  etc.,  mil- 
linery, furniture,  packing  houses,  and  pianos. 

The  greatest  difficulty  in  obtaining  skilled  employees  and  fore- 
men is  found  in  printing,  industries  employing  mainly  women, 
jewelry,  and  men's  clothing  (Table  12a).  The  group  of  contractors 
and  builders  shows  considerable  difficulty  in  obtaining  foremen. 

Table  12a.    Rank  of  the  Industries  in  Table  12,  by  Groups 


Rank  on 
question  3 

Weekly  v/ages 

Low-grade  skill 

High-grade  skill 

1 .     Printing 

3 

5 

1 

10 

2 

6 

8 

4 

7 
9 

m.    8.50-15.00 
f.      6.00-10.00 
m.    8.00-15.00 
f.      5.00-15.00 
m.    8.00-10.00 
f.      6.00-  7.00 
m.  10.50-13.00 
f.      5.50 
m.    8.00-10.00 
f.      7.00-  9.00 
m.  10.00-18.00 
f.      6.00-  9.00 
m.  11.00-15.00 
f. 

m.  10.80-17.00 
f. 

20.00-28.00 

2.  Industries  employing 

mainly  women 

3.  Jewelry  manufacturing. . 

4.  Pianos 

12.00-18.00 

15.00-30.00 

8.00-24.00 

20.00-25.00 

18.00-19.00 

4.  Men's  clothing 

5.  Iron  and  steel 

10.00 

18.00-23.00 
15.00-19.00 
16.50-22.00 

6.     Furniture 

8.00-11.00 
15.00-19.50 

7.     Contractors 

8.00-13.00 
16.20-30.00 

8.     Miscellaneous.. 

9.     Packing  houses 

m.  10.50-12.00 
f.      6.50-12.00 

15.00-25.00 

7.50-14.00 

An  examination  of  the  wages  paid  in  the  high-grade  skilled  class 
shows,  in  a  general  way,  that  the  industries  of  higher  rank  on  ques- 
tion 2  pay  the  higher  wages  for  this  class  of  employees.  In  the 
low-grade  class  the  inverse  relation  predominates.  It  can  not  be 
said,  therefore,  on  the  basis  of  these  reports,  that  the  greater  diffi- 
culty of  obtaining  skilled  employees  in  certain  industries  is  due  to 
the  lower  wages  paid. 

A  somewhat  definite  measure  of  the  degree  of  difficulty  experi- 
enced in  obtaining  skilled  employees  is  furnished  by  Table  13  which 
gives  the  answers  to  the  following  question : 


52 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Question  7.  To  what  extent  could  your  business  be  advanced  if 
more  skilled  zvorkers  were  available,  and  if  greater  industrial  or 
business  intelligence  prevailed  among  foremen  or  department  heads? 

Table  13.     Answers  to  Question  7,  by  Industries 


Number  answering  question  7  by: 

INDUSTRY 

"amazing 
degree" 
"vast" 
"unlim- 
ited" 
100  percent 
or  more 

"very 

much" 

"greatly" 

50%-100% 

"some" 

"consider- 
ably," 
"materi- 
ally" 
10%-50% 

"none" 

Not 
answering 

the 
question 

1.  Industries  employing 

mainly  women  (36) 9 .  . . 

2.  Men's  clothing  (9) 

3.  Iron,  steel  and  electrical 

products  (49) 

4 
1 

2 

2 

2 
1 

8 
1 

12 

2 

1 

8 

3 
1 

12 
3 

20 

9 

3 
17 

3 

2 

4 
1 

1 

1 
1 

2 
1 

11 

4 
14 

4.  Contractors    and    build- 

ers (17) 

5.  Furniture,  metallic  beds, 

office  furniture  (10) .  .  . 

6.  Printing  (35) 

3 

4 

7 

7.  Jewelry     manufacturing 
(11) 

5 

8.  Packing  houses  (7) 

9.  Pianos,    musical    instru- 

ments (4) 

3 

10.  Miscellaneous  (3) 

2 

Total  (181) 

12 

36 

74 

8 

51 

Per    cent    of    total    number 
(130)  answering  the  ques- 
tion   

9.2 

27.6 

56.9 

6.1 

The  totals  in  Table  13  show  that  93.7  per  cent  of  the  establish- 
ments answering  the  question  believe  that  their  business  could  be 
advanced  in  amounts  varying  from  10  to  100  per  cent,  or  more,  if 
more  skilled  workers  were  available ;  36.8  per  cent  of  the  establish- 
ments believe  that  the  advance  would  be  from  50  to  100  per  cent, 
or  more. 

That  most  employers  have  not  trained  in  their  own  establish- 
ments all,  or  even  a  majority  of  their  skilled  employees,  is  shown  by 
Table  14,  which  gives  the  replies  to  the  following  question : 

Question  1.  From  what  source  do  you  obtain  your  skilled 
employees  —  employees  of  high-grade  skill,  and  of  medium  or  low- 
grade  skill? 

9  The  numbers  in  parentheses  following  the  descriptive  terms  indicate  the  number  of 
establishments  replying. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


53 


(a)     Are  they  trained  in  your  own  establishments?     (b)     Are 
they  obtained  from  other  sources? 

Table  14.    Training  of  Skilled  Employees 


industry 


1.  Industries  employing  mainly 

women  (36) 

Embroidery,   children's   dresses, 

dry  goods,  specialties  (9) 

Hats,  gloves,  fur  goods  (3) 

Men's  neckwear,  shirts,  hosiery, 

underwear  (,7) 

Cloaks,  suits,  waists  (5) 

Factory  millinery  (6) 

Paper  boxes  (6) 

2.  Men's  clothing  (9) 

Wholesale  manufacturers  (5) .  .  . 
Tailors  to  the  trade  (4) 

3.  Iron,  steel  and  electrical  products, 

conveyances  (49) 

Machine  and  engine  construc- 
tion, car  building,  foundry, 
steel  works,  ornamental  iron 
(21) 

Electrical  apparatus,  gas  and 
electric  fixtures,  automatic 
machines  (9) 

Automobiles  and  accessories, 
wagons,  farm  implements  (19) 

4.  Contractors  and  builders  (17) .... 

General  construction  of  build- 
ings, electric  power  plants, 
docks  (10) 

Bridge  and  other  steel  structural 
work  (3) 

Excavating,  wrecking,  roofing 
(4) 

5.  Furniture,    metallic    beds,     office 

fixtures  (10) -. 

6.  Printing  (35) 

Job  and  newspaper  printing  (20) 
Engraving,    electrotyping,    em- 
bossing, lithographing  (15) .  .  . 

7.  Jewelry  manufacturing  (11) 

8.  Packing  houses  and  allied  indus- 

tries (7) 

9.  Pianos,  musical  instruments  (4) .  . 

Total 

Per  cent  of  total  number  (174)  of  firms 
answering  the  question 


Number  of  firms  answering  that  of  their 
skilled  employees  they  train  in  their  own 
establishments 


'All" 


1 

1 

4 

1 

2 

1 

3 

1 

1 

5 

4 

1 

1 

4 

18 

17 


9.7 


'Majority" 


14 


56 


32.1 


"Few' 


11 
1 

2 

2 
1 
3 
2 
3 
1 
2 

23 


14 


19 
11 

8 
9 


82 


47.1 


'None' 


19 


10.9 


54 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


The  totals  for  Tabic  14  show  that  58  per  cent  of  the  establish- 
ments train  few  or  none  of  their  skilled  employees  ;  that  only  9.7 
per  cent  train  all  of  their  skilled  employees ;  and  that  32.1  per  cent 
train  a  majority.  Corresponding  percentages  for  similar  industries 
in  New  York  State  are  59.6  per  cent  training  few  or  none;  5.5  per 
cent  training  all ;  33.7  per  cent  training  a  majority.10 

The  rank  of  the  industries  with  respect  to  the  percentages  of 
firms  reporting  that  they  train  few  or  none  of  their  skilled  employees 
is  shown  in  Table  14a. 

Table  14a.    Rank  of  the  Industries  in  Table  14,  by  Groups 


Jewelry  manufacturing 

Furniture,  metallic  beds,  office  fixtures 

Pianos  and  musical  instruments 

Printing _ 

Contractors  and  builders. .' 

Iron,  steel  and  electrical  products,  conveyances. 

Industries  employing  mainly  women 

Men's  clothing 

Packing  houses 

Total 


Per  cent  reporting  that 
they  train  few  or  none 
of  their  skilled  em- 
ployees 


11 

81.8 

10 

80.8 

4 

75.0 

35 

74.2 

16 

68.7 

49 

55.1 

34 

44.1 

9 

33.3 

6 

58.0 


That  the  apprentice  system  does  not  meet  the  need  for  skilled 
employees  is  shown  by  the  investigation  of  452  establishments  in 
New  York  State,  in  industries  similar  to  most  of  those  canvassed  in 
Chicago;  66.8  per  cent  reported  that  the  apprentice  system  did  not 
meet  the  need  for  skilled  employees  in  their  business.11 

The  industrial  and  social  conditions  responsible  for  the  failure 
of  the  apprenticeship  system  to  train  a  sufficient  number  of  skilled 
employees  are  well  set  forth  in  the  following  quotation  from  a  dis- 
cussion of  this  question  by  Prof.  C.  R.  Richards,  Director  of  Cooper 
Union,  New  York  City.12 

10  Report  of  New  York  State  Bureau  of  Statistics,  Part  I,  1908.  In  this  comparison 
the  New  York  industries  omitted  are:    glass,  leather,  textiles,  cigars  and  confectionery. 

11  Report  of  New  York  State  Bureau  of  Statistics,  Part  I,  1908.  In  this  statement 
the  New  York  industries  omitted  are:    glass,  leather,  textiles,  cigars  and  confectionery. 

12  The  quotation  is  taken  from  the  Report  of  the  New  York  State  Bureau  of  Statistics, 
Part  I,  1908,  pp.  24-27.  Professor  Richard's  extensive  observations  give  special  value  to 
his  statement. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  55 

The  modern  organization  of  industry  on  the  capitalist  basis  means  the 
employment  of  numbers  of  workmen  as  wage  earners  whose  sole  responsi- 
bility is  the  forwarding  of  the  productive  tasks  assigned  to  them.  Such 
organization  generally  also  means  extended  division  of  labor.  It  means  these 
things  whether  hand  power  or  machinery  be  used  in  this  industry.  In  the 
trades  where  machinery  is  used,  the  value  of  the  workman's  time  for  purely 
productive  purposes  is  increased  by  the  added  cost  of  machine  and  power. 
With  the  entire  working  force  engaged  upon  production,  it  i-,  no  one's  interest 
to  turn  aside  and  instruct  the  learner,  and  such  instruction,  if  in  any  sense 
comprehensive,  can  be  given  in  the  direct  course  of  production  only  at  a  cer- 
tain immediate  loss. 

Under  these  conditions,  the  employer  of  to-day,  drawing  his  workmen 
from  the  general  labor  market,  that  in  some  cases  is  largely  fed  by  immigra- 
tion, no  longer  feels  the  same  individual  necessity  and  responsibility  for  the 
training  of  beginners  and  hesitates  to  assume  the  cost  and  inconvenience 
of  such  a  provision.  The  maintenance  of  a  thorough  apprenticeship  system 
having  become  exceptional,  imposes  in  a  sense  a  penalty  upon  the  manufac- 
turer who  undertakes  it,  inasmuch  as  he  has  no  guarantee  that  apprentices 
will  remain  in  his  employ.  Furthermore,  the  great  subdivision  of  labor  that 
characterizes  all  modern  industries  on  a  large  scale  imposes  peculiar  difficul- 
ties in  the  way  of  a  thorough  and  comprehensive  training,  inasmuch  as  such 
a  training  involves  a  shifting  of  the  apprentice  from  one  branch  to  another 
that  lessens  his  productive  value.  All  these  conditions  make  the  employer 
slow  to  assume  the  trouble  and  expense  of  a  thorough  apprenticeship  system. 
The  tendency  is  more  and  more  to  place  the  beginner  upon  certain  special 
branches  at  the  tools  and  let  him  develop  as  quickly  as  possible  into  a  pro- 
ductive unit. 

On  the  other  hand,  as  pointed  out  above,  the  journeyman  under  ordinary 
conditions  has  no  interest  or  advantage  in  the  training  of  an  apprentice. 
His  first  consideration  is,  of  necessity,  his  own  wages,  and  especially  in  those 
industries  that  are  upon  a  piece-work  basis,  the  journeyman  has  no  time 
for  teaching;  furthermore,  he  is  apt  to  look  upon  the  apprentice  as  a  future 
rival  who  will  add  to  the  supply  of  skilled  workers  and  reduce  his  own 
chance  of  employment. 

Another  difficulty,  and  a  very  large  one,  that  faces  the  apprenticeship 
question  is  the  unwillingness  of  the  American  boy  to  submit  to  a  long  period 
of  training  at  low  wages  for  the  sake  of  future  opportunities.  The  tendency 
of  the  American  boy  is  toward  a  short  cut ;  he  resents  the  rules  and  restric- 
tions of  the  apprenticeship  period  and  turns  to  openings  that  yield  larger 
immediate  returns.  That  this  attitude  is  justifiable  and  natural  in  many  cases 
where  the  so-called  apprentice  is  given  practically  no  assistance  toward 
attaining  a  really  broad  training,  and  where  he  is  left  largely  to  chance  and 
his  own  initiative  to  pick  up  anything  more  than  the  rudiments  of  a  trade, 
must  be  conceded.  This  attitude  is  only  removed  when  the  apprentice  E 
that  his  interests  are  being  cared  for  and  a  systematic  effort  is  being  made 
to  open  up  a  future  worth  working  for.  That  it  is  removable  is  satisfactorily 
shown  in  those  instances  where  provision  is  made  for  systematic  training 
and  technical  instruction  on  the  part  of  the  employer. 


56  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Another  cause  that  holds  back  a  bright  boy  from  the  apprenticeship  is 
the  low  wages  paid.  Whereas  the  journeyman's  wage  has  been  advanced  in 
most  of  the  skilled  trades  under  the  influence  of  organization,  the  wages  of 
the  apprentice  have  not  advanced  in  proportion  to  the  demand  for  young 
men  in  the  industries.  Organized  labor,  with  its  mind  almost  solely  upon 
the  advancement  of  the  standard  of  living,  and  the  employer,  with  his  mind 
almost  solely  upon  the  increase  of  profits,  have  neither  been  concerned  to 
advance  the  wage  of  the  apprentice,  and  with  no  influence  to  press  them 
upward  these  wages  have  remained  extremely  low. 

Owing  to  these  many  conditions,  apprenticeship  in  the  sense  of  a  broad 
and  thorough  training  of  the  first-class  workman  has  given  place  in  many 
establishments  and  in  many  of  the  industries  where  it  formerly  prevailed  to 
a  so-called  apprenticeship  that  trains  in  only  a  narrow  range  of  work  and 
tits  only  in  some  special  line  of  skill.  In  such  apprenticeship  systems  the 
period  of  training  is  much  shorter  than  in  the  older  form  and  very  often 
no  age  restrictions  are  imposed.  Such  systems  figure  to  quite  an  extent 
in  .  .  .  the  machine  woodworking  trades,  in  the  manufacture  of  gas  and 
electric  fixtures,  in  some  branches  of  boot  and  shoe  manufacture,  in  garment 
making  and  in  the  manufacture  of  cigars. 

The  helper  system  is  another  important  channel  through  which  beginners 
enter  the  skilled  trades.  The  helper  takes  various  forms  in  the  various 
trades,  but  in  general  he  supplies  the  relatively  unskilled  help  needed  to 
carry  forward  the  work  of  the  skilled  journeyman.  In  some  industries,  as 
in  certain  of  the  building  trades,  he  appears  as  an  unskilled  mature  laborer 
that  rarely  advances  to  the  grade  of  a  skilled  worker.  In  others  he  is  repre- 
sented by  a  younger  class,  below  the  journeyman,  called  juniors,  improvers 
or  helpers,  who  may  be  in  regular  succession  to  the  skilled  positions.  In 
other  cases,  as  in  the  machine  shop,  the  helper  is  a  "  handy  man  "  who  per- 
forms odd  jobs  and  in  general  the  less  skilled  kinds  of  work  such  as  finishing 
and  filing.  Such  helpers  have  an  opportunity  to  watch  the  operations  of  the 
journeyman  and  to  become  acquainted  with  his  work,  and  where  the  condi- 
tions admit,  the  brighter  and  more  progressive  advance  to  the  positions  of 
skilled  workmen. 

One  other  general  method  under  which  skilled  workers  for  the  industries 
are  recruited  applies  more  or  less  to  all  industries  in  which  great  division  of 
labor  obtains.  In  such  industries  beginners  are  generally  put  at  first  at  the 
simpler  operations,  and  as  they  show  ability  and  application  are  advanced 
to  somewhat  more  difficult  processes  or  the  manipulation  of  less  simple 
machines.  This  advancement  may  continue  up  to  that  particular  point  in  the 
organization  beyond  which  the  capacities  or  ambition  of  the  worker  are  not 
sufficient  to  carry  him.  This  system  of  developing  skilled  workers  obtains 
in  most  women's  trades,  such  as  clothing,  millinery  and  laundries,  in  the 
boot  and  shoe  manufacture  and  in  textile  mills,  and  is  found  more  or  less 
combined  with  other  systems  of  training  in  all  other  industries  where  much 
division  of  labor  obtains. 

Table  15  shows  the  attitude  of  employers  on  industrial  schools, 
as  revealed  by  the  answers  to  the  following  three  questions : 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  57 

Question  4.  Would  the  efficiency  and  future  opportunities  of 
your  employees  be  increased  if  they  received  a  training  between  the 
ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen  in  a  general  public  industrial  or  pre- 
paratory trade  school  which  aims  to  give  a  knowledge  of  materials, 
shop  mathematics,  and  fundamental  industrial  methods,  and  some 
idea  of  industrial  organization,  but  does  not  teach  a  special  trade? 

Question  5.  Would  practical  day  trade  schools,  giving  a  special- 
ised and  intensive  training  of  one  year  or  more  after  the  age  of  six- 
teen, help  to  meet  the  problem  of  skilled  employees  in  your  business? 

Question  6.  Would  practical  evening  or  half-time  trade  schools 
be  of  value  in  helping  unskilled  workers,  or  those  of  low-grade  skill, 
to  advance  to  positions  requiring  high-grade  skill?  (Remark.  Ques- 
tion 6  was  interpreted  by  practically  all  employers  to  refer  to  evening 
schools  only.) 


58 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


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CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


59 


The  rank  of  the  industries,  in  the  order  of  the  per  cent  of  the 
number  of  establishments  answering  "  yes  "  to  questions  -A  and  5 
is  as  follows : 

Table  15a.    Rank  of  the  Industries  in  Table  15 


Rank  on  question  4 


1.  Jewelry 

1.  Miscellaneous 

2.  Iron,  steel 

3.  Contractors 

4.  Industries  employing  mainly  women 

5.  Furniture 

6.  Men's  clothing 

6.  Packing  houses 

7.  Printing 

8.  Pianos 


Rank 
on  question  5 


Table  16  gives  the  number  of  employees  of  medium  or  low-grade 
skill,  the  number  of  high-grade  skill,  the  total  number  of  employees, 
and  the  per  cent  of  the  total  force  in  the  two  skilled  classes. 


60 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


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REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


The  totals  for  Table  16  show  that  68.9  per  cent  of  the  employees 
are  in  the  two  skilled  classes,  only  27.7  per  cent,  however,  in  the 
high-grade  skilled  class. 

The  rank  of  the  ten  groups  of  industries  with  respect  to  the  per- 
centage of  employees  in  the  highly  skilled  class  is  given  in  Table  16a. 

Table  16a.     Rank  of  Industries  with  Respect  to  Percentage 
of  Employees  in  Highly  Skilled  Class 


1.  Men's  clothing15 

2.  Furniture 

3.  Printing 

4.  Pianos 

5.  Contractors 

6.  Industries  employing  mainly 
women 

7.  Iron,  steel 

8.  Jewelry 

9.  Packing  houses 

10.     Miscellaneous 

Total 


Total  employees  in 

Per    cent    in    highly 

establishments 

skilled  class 

answering  these 

questions 

73 

1,165 

70 

4,236 

62 

4,803 

52 

1,242 

49 

3,208 

25 

4,400 

23 

47,286 

19 

379 

16 

14,439 

10 

8,175 

27 


89,333 


Table  17  gives  the  number  and  per  cent  of  employees  under 
eighteen  years  of  age  being  trained  for  positions  of  medium  or  low- 
grade  skill,  and  for  positions  of  high-grade  skill. 


13  Of   the   9    firms   in   this   industry    replying   to   the    committee's    letter,    only    3    firms 
answered  the  questions  here  involved. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES 


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64 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


The  totals  for  Table  17  show  that  the  number  of  employees 
under  eighteen  years  of  age  being  trained  for  positions  in  the  two 
skilled  classes  is  3.7  per  cent  of  the  total  working  force.  For  the 
highly  skilled  class  the  number  is  1.5  per  cent  of  the  total  force. 

Table  18  gives  the  number  and  per  cent  of  employees  under  16 
years  of  age. 

Table  18.    Number  and  Per  Cent  of  Employees  under  16 


Number  of  employees  under  16 

Total 
employees 
in  establish- 
ments 
answering 

the 
question 

Per  cent 

INDUSTRY 

Male 

Female 

Male  and 
Female 

em- 
ployees 

1.  Industries  employing 
mainly  women  (31)20 

2.  Men's  clothing  (8) 

3.  Iron,    steel   and    electrical 
products  (46) 

40 
71 

24 

357 
164 

397 
235 

24 

5,383 

5,087 

49,285 

5,358 

4,686 

5,089 

397 

14,439 

1,242 
8,175 

7.319 
4.6 

0.0004 

4.     Contractors    and    builders 
(13) 

0.0 

5.  Furniture,     metallic    beds 
and  office  fixtures  (10) 

6.  Printing  (34).  .  . 

49 

185 

2 

11 

10 
132 

111 
6 

11 
35 

49 

296 

8 

11 

27 
167 

1.0 
5.8 

7.  Jewelry  manufacturing (11) 

8.  Packing  houses  (5) 

9.  Pianos  and  musical  instru- 
ments (4) 

2.0 

0.0007 

2.1 

10.     Miscellaneous  (2) 

2.0 

Total 

530 

684 

1,214 

99,141 

1.2 

Recapitulation 

The  number  of  children  under  sixteen  years  in  Chicago's  skilled 
industries  is  almost  zero,  just  above  one  per  cent.  These  children  are 
receiving  no  training.  The  industries  that  are  giving  any  sort  of 
training  for  high-grade  skill  affect  only  one-sixth  of  the  group  of 
children  between  fourteen  and  eighteen,  and  for  both  low-grade  and 
high-grade  skill  the  industries  are  training  only  two-fifths  of  the 
children  of  that  age. 

Three-fourths  of  the  firms  replying  find  difficulty  in  obtaining 
or  training  skilled  employees,  and  a  little  lower  percentage  report 

19  This  large  per  cent  is  due  mainly  to  the  returns  from  one  firm,  manufacturing  paper 
boxes,  which  reports  250  girls  and  15  boys  under  sixteen  years  of  age,  out  of  a  total 
force  of  S00  females  and  200  males. 

20  The  numbers  in  parentheses  following  the  descriptive  terms  indicate  the  number  of 
establishments  replying  to  the  questions  concerned  in  this  table. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  65 

difficulty  in  training  or  obtaining  foremen ;  nearly  sixty  per  cent  of 
the  firms  train  few  or  none  of  their  own  skilled  workmen. 

Practically  all  admit  that  their  business  would  be  advanced  if 
more  skilled  workers  were  available.  For  this  reason  nearly  ninety 
per  cent  believe  that  industrial  schools  of  different  types  for  the 
years  between  fourteen  and  eighteen  would  be  of  value  to  their  con- 
cerns. 

The  percentage  of  employers  in  Chicago  finding  difficulty  in 
obtaining  skilled  laborers  is  greater  than  those  reporting  in  the  New 
York  State  inquiry,  and  a  larger  percentage  favor  industrial  school- 
ing of  different  types. 

The  indication  of  this  report  is  that  the  firms  which  feel  the 
need  of  more  skilled  labor  are  offering  higher  wages,  so  that  the 
scarcity  of  skilled  labor  is  not  due  to  relatively  low  wages.  Refer- 
ring to  the  New  York  report  we  find  that  nearly  seventy  per  cent 
of  the  firms  replying  stated  that  the  apprenticeship  system  does  not 
meet  the  need  for  skilled  employees.  What  is  true  in  New  York  in 
this  respect  is  true  in  Chicago. 

Beyond  question  Chicago's  industries  need  and  demand  industrial 
training  during  the  years  when  that  training  can  be  profitably  given, 
that  is  during  the  years  between  fourteen  and  eighteen,  and  this 
need  is  being  met  neither  by  the  industries  themselves,  nor  by  the 
apprenticeship  system,  nor  as  yet  by  the  schools. 

Comments  of  individual  employers 

The  schedule  of  questions  submitted  to  employers  contained  the 
statement  that  suggestions  would  be  welcome  on  any  of  the  ques- 
tions or  on  the  general  subject.  In  response  to  this  statement,  the 
following  comments  were  received.  All  the  comments,  which  were 
of  significance  one  way  or  another,  are  here  included,  classified  by 
industries. 

A.     Industries  employing  mainly  women 

1.  We  employ  about  300  girls  in  our  factory  here  and  have  difficulty 
at  times  to  obtain  sufficient  trained  operators.  We  believe  an  industrial  school 
for  girls  would  be  a  great  help  to  manufacturers  here.  We  would  go  further, 
and  recommend  that  commercial  training  schools  for  boys  and  girls  be 
established.  It  is  becoming  more  difficult  all  the  time  to  obtain  sufficient 
and  efficient  office  help.  We  think  it  would  be  a  very  valuable  thing  to  have 
schools  for  both  purposes,  for  the  office  as  well  as  for  the  factory.  In  some 
of  the  foreign  countries  the  trade  schools  are  a  great  help,  not  only  to  the 
merchants  but  to  the  young  men  who  are  obliged  to  attend  them. 
6 


66  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

2.  We  find  that  not  being  able  to  get  girls  and  boys  at  fourteen  to  work 
in  our  shop  we  are  shut  out  of  their  efforts  at  a  time  in  life  when  they  are 
most  susceptible  for  the  grasping  of  the  details  of  business  and  readily  learn 
what  is  required.  But  at  sixteen  the  young  employee  has  not  benefited  by 
the  last  two  years  in  school  and  his  mind  is  full  of  little  things  that  detract 
from  his  application  and  ofttimes  he  is  downright  bad  at  heart  and  cannot 
or  will  not  apply  himself  to  his  work  with  an  idea  of  making  a  success  of 
same.  Usually  the  first  question  asked  by  a  boy  of  sixteen  is  the  amount  of 
wage  he  is  to  receive,  and  if  same  seems  to  be  sufficiently  large  to  cover  his 
fancied  needs  he  will  accept  the  position  without  any  regard  to  whether  he 
cares  for  the  kind  of  employment  or  any  desire  to  become  a  skilled  fur 
worker. 

This  holds  more  with  boys  than  girls,  but  think  both  would  be  greatly 
benefited  if  they  could  be  put  to  work  at  fourteen  years  in  clean,  sanitary, 
high-class  workshops  under  just  and  upright  employers. 

3.  We  have  great  trouble  in  obtaining  skilled  employees,  and  owing  to 
this  we  were  compelled  to  open  branches  in  other  cities. 

A  practical  trade  school  for  boys  and  girls  sixteen  years  of  age  would 
be  the  greatest  help  to  become  artists  in  our  line,  for  which  there  is  a  great 
field.  Enlightenment  of  any  kind  will  advance  positions  very  materially  in 
our  line. 

4.  The  only  way  in  which  we  see  an  industrial  training  in  the  public 
schools  could  directly  benefit  the  cloak  and  suit  trade  would  be  to  teach  the 
girls  how  to  handle  a  needle,  as  it  is  surprising  the  number  we  get  who  do 
not  know  the  first  rudiments  of  sewing. 

We  believe,  however,  anything  which  tends  to  give  a  practical  and  indus- 
trial education  is  a  good  thing  for  manufacturing  trade  in  general. 

B.     Men's  clothing 

1.  We  educate  the  people  who  come  to  us  to  sew ;  we  educate  pressers, 
button-hole  makers,  cutters  and,  in  fact,  employees  in  every  department  of 
manufacture.  Very  few  of  these  people  have  had  any  other  education  except 
a  few  years  in  the  graded  public  schools. 

There  is  some  difficulty  in  obtaining  the  right  class  of  men  to  act  in 
executive  capacities,  such  as  foremen  and  heads  of  tailoring  shops.  For 
example,  we  have  offered  excellent  opportunities  in  these  positions,  but  before 
a  man  can  competently  manage  a  shop  he  must  first  become  a  tailor.  The 
man  of  college  education  will  not  undertake  it,  for  he  considers  the  form  of 
work  necessary  for  his  practical  education  to  be  beneath  his  dignity.  The 
men  who  are  now  filling  the  positions  of  foremen  and  superintendents  are 
those  who  have  graduated  from  the  ranks  of  the  practical  workman  without 
other  education  than  that  received  from  us  in  the  shops  where  they  were 
previously  employed. 

We  believe  in  industrial  education  and  are  convinced  that  the  efficiency 
and  opportunities  of  employees  are  greater  if  they  are  schooled  between  the 
ages  of  fourteen  and  sixteen.  People  who  have  not  had  any  education  do 
not  rise,  except  in  rare  cases,  above  mediocrity.  With  further  education 
they  will  undoubtedly  rise  much  higher  on  the  average. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  >>7 

2.  There  can  be  no  question  about  the  great  benefit  our  industries  would 
derive  from  trade  schools,  combined  with  elementary  schools  for  boys  and 
girls,  such  schools  to  take  up  the  studies  which  the  graduates  from  the  gram- 
mar schools  receive  in  the  first  year  of  the  high  school.  This  would  take 
in  the  boys  and  girls  from  fourteen  to  sixteen  years,  the  average  age  when 
they  complete  the  grammar  grades. 

Separate  trade  schools,  in  my  opinion,  should  be  established  for  each 
particular  industry,  superintended  by  a  board  of  directors  composed  of  manu- 
facturers in  that  branch  of  industry  and  managed  by  one  or  more  good, 
practical  foremen,  such  foremen  to  be  paid  a  fair  salary,  and  the  expenses  of 
the  school  to  be  met  by  annual  contributions  of  the  manufacturers  in  that 
branch  of  industry.    The  tailoring  industry  would  give  all  possible  assistance. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that,  in  many  instances,  these  boys  and  girls  of  four- 
teen to  sixteen  years  of  age  contribute  to  their  own  support,  or  that  of  the 
family,  the  foreman,  with  the  consent  of  the  board  of  directors,  may  allow 
the  advanced  pupils  to  be  paid  for  work  done  which  may  be  sent  in  by  the 
manufacturers,  provided,  however,  that  such  work  shall  in  no  case  interfere 
with  the  elementary  studies. 

C.     Iron  and  steel  products 

1.  We  have  also  500  men  in  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts,  and  carry  on  and 
support  special  training  two  weeks  alternating  in  shop  and  high  school.  Sys- 
tem has  been  tried  one  year  and  is  liked  very  much.21 

We  are  moving  away  from  Chicago  on  account  of  our  difficulty  in  secur- 
ing skilled  employees. 

2.  In  over  twenty  years,  we  have  had  a  great  many  college  men  in  our 
employ.  Very  few  of  them,  however,  remained.  It  was  too  slow  a  process 
for  them  to  work  in  and  become  a  part  of  our  organization.  The  plan  of 
giving  alternate  weeks  to  factory  work  and  college  study  comes  pretty  nearly 
being  ideal.  The  boys  accomplish  nearly  as  much  in  study  as  if  they  had 
given  all  their  time  to  it,  and  when  they  get  through  they  are  not  suffering 
from  the  enormous  handicap  of  having  the  wrong  point  of  view.  The  boys 
we  are  using  on  this  plan22  are  very  useful  in  the  factory,  and  I  foresee 
much  greater  usefulness  from  them  as  time  goes  on.  They  are  getting 
science  with  practice,  and  avoid  the  monotony  of  too  much  of  either.  I 
believe  the  scheme  is  the  best  that  has  yet  been  proposed,  and  that  the  boy 
who  makes  his  way  through  a  technical  institute  on  this  plan  will  have  found 
an  exceedingly  pleasant  and  profitable  way,  which  gives  great  promise  for 
the  future. 

3.  The  trade  school  would  help,  but  the  cooperative  shop  and  school 
course,  as  introduced  by  National  Metal  Trades  Association  three  years  ago, 
would  be  better,  giving  "  commercial  "  conditions. 

4.  We  have  tried  a  great  many  experiments  with  boys  and  young  men 
in  our  plant,  and,  with  possibly  two  exceptions,  they  have  all  been  more  or 
less  failures. 

a  For  Fitchburg  cooperative  plan,  see   p 
33  The  Lewis  Institute  Cooperative  Course. 


68  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

We  have  noted  that  with  the  advent  of  moving  picture  shows,  pool  rooms 
and  other  amusement  enterprises,  there  is  a  large  field  for  young  fellows  to 
pick  up  a  lot  of  fairly  easy  money.  Of  course  their  experience  prevents  them 
from  seeing  that  these  positions  are  at  the  best  temporary,  and  do  not  tend 
to  building  them  up  for  a  solid  business  future.  The  result  is  that  the  aver- 
age young  man  gets  disgusted  in  a  business  that  offers  but  a  few  dollars  a 
week  to  start,  and  we  are,  therefore,  up  against  the  proposition  of  constantly 
changing  our  help. 

We  tried  out  the  Lewis  Institute  experiment  very  thoroughly  last  year 
with  three  or  four  boys  and  they  all  fell  down. 

We  think  that  the  trouble  goes  back  a  little  further  than  to  the  boys' 
schooling.  A  large  percentage  of  them  make  very  bad  starts  right  in  their 
own  homes. 

5.  In  one  of  our  plants  in  another  city  we  have  made  it  a  practice  for 
many  years,  to  secure  at  least  a  few  of  the  graduates  of  the  Williamson 
Training  School  each  year.23  These  boys  are  started  at  $12  a  week,  which  is 
considerably  more  than  they  are  worth,  to  begin  with,  but  they  demonstrate 
very  quickly  the  value  of  their  preparation,  and  furnish  us  material,  not  only 
for  the  higher  classes  of  machine  and  pattern  work,  but  also  for  sub-foremen 
and  foremen.  One  advantage  of  the  training  which  the  boys  in  the  William- 
son School  receive  is,  that  it  develops  no  false  ideals,  and  when  the  boys 
graduate  they  look  for  their  future  in  the  shop,  and  are  willing  to  take  their 
chances  as  greasy-handed  mechanics. 

It  has  been  my  experience  that  many  of  the  graduates  of  schools  that 
really  are  no  better  than  trade  schools  feel  themselves  too  good  to  be 
mechanics,  and  look  for  advancement  in  the  drafting  room,  and  other  of  the 
white  collar  departments. 

At  Chicago,  at  the  present  time,  we  are  availing  ourselves  of  a  special 
course  provided  by  the  Lewis  Institute,  and  four  of  our  boys  spend  alternate 
weeks  at  the  Institute.  We  have  found  it  a  little  difficult  to  keep  these  boys 
interested,  and  if  this  system  fails,  it  is  because  it  will  be  difficult  to  keep 
up  the  boys'  interest  when  part  of  the  time  is  spent  in  the  shop,  and  part  at 
school. 

The  difficulty  of  getting  promising  material  in  Chicago  is  very  much 
larger  than  it  is  in  the  East,  and  we  should  be  very  glad  to  cooperate  in  any 
manner  to  assist  in  training  boys  at  the  critical  age,  so  that  they  may  become 
efficient  members  of  the  craft. 

6.  We  have  four  boys  at  Lewis  Institute,  two  alternating  each  week. 
We  also  are  starting  an  instruction  school  to  make  our  men  better  all-around 
mechanics  for  future  use  in  the  general  work  of  our  product. 

7.  Yes,  we  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  and  in  training  skilled  employees, 
mainly  because  of  their  lack  of  fundamental  education  and  inability  to  prop- 
erly plan  their  work. 

8.  Trade  schools  would  not  help  unless  there  were  mathematics  and 
mechanical  drawing  connected  with  such  a  school,  because  in  the  average 
shop  where  they  go  to  learn  their  trade,  they  get  the  practical  training  in 

23  See  p.  190. 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  69 

the  use  of  tools  and  machinery,  and  I  believe  such  training  is  better,  and 
more  thoroughly  given  in  the  shop  than  it  can  be  in  the  average  school. 

9.  Trade  schools  would  not  help,  because  we  think  they  had  better  start 
to  work  at  sixteen;  otherwise  they  do  not  want  to  commence  at  the  bottom 
and  so  would  not  learn  the  trade  thoroughly. 

10.  Yes,  it  is  hard  to  get  a  skilled  mechanic  to  act  as  foreman ;  they 
hate  to  assume  the  responsibility. 

11.  Our  experience  has  been  that  the  young  men  of  the  city  who  come 
here  from  the  public  schools  have  little  or  no  idea  of  industrial  methods 
or  of  shop  practices  and  we  believe  that  if  these  young  men  were  given 
some  mechanical  training  they  would  be  in  a  far  better  position  to  develop 
themselves  or  at  least  be  more  susceptible  to  our  training  in  actual  manufac- 
turing work. 

If  there  were  such  a  day  trade  school  which  would  supplement  the  work 
of  the  higher  grammar  grades  and  first  grades  of  high  school  it  would  to 
a  very  great  extent  help  in  supplying  the  demands  for  skilled  workmen  and 
would  in  our  judgment  greatly  facilitate  the  power  of  development  in  young 
men,  placing  them  where  they  would  be  able  to  attain  positions  of  greater 
trust  and  importance.  We  find  that  those  young  men  who  have  had  oppor- 
tunity to  give  even  a  short  time  to  any  of  the  few  manual  training  schools 
now  in  existence  in  this  city  develop  much  faster  in  our  business  and  can 
be  used  in  a  greater  variety  of  positions  by  the  fact  of  having  this  manual 
training  education.  Many  young  men  start  in  manufacturing  plants  and 
learn  just  one  operation,  such  as  running  a  drill  press  or  a  milling  machine, 
etc.,  or  learn  one  line  of  bench  work,  but  cannot  help  themselves  because 
of  a  lack  of  efficiency  and  of  ambition,  due  to  an  inability  to  read  specifica- 
tions and  interpret  blue  prints,  thus  being  barred  from  high  grades  of  work 
and  from  executive  positions  in  the  manufacturing  world. 

The  practical  evening  trade  schools  are  of  considerable  importance  and 
do  a  great  deal  of  good,  but  do  not  in  any  way  provide  a  sufficient  number 
of  semi-skilled  young  men  to  fill  positions  of  importance  in  our  works.  If 
the  number  of  these  trade  schools  could  be  increased,  they  could  in  a  great 
way  assist  in  supplying  the  large  demand  for  help  of  this  kind. 

12.  Our  contracts  with  the  labor  unions  require  us  to  give  the  officials 
of  each  union  the  opportunity  to  furnish  each  new  man  for  the  craft  con- 
trolled by  each  respective  union.  We  are  required  to  give  union  officials 
from  twenty-four  to  forty-eight  hours  notice  before  a  man  is  hired.  If  they 
do  not  furnish  a  man  in  that  time  we  are  privileged  to  secure  him  elsewhere, 
provided  that  he  is  willing  to  join  the  union,  or  else  we  must  dismiss  him  as 
soon  as  the  union  is  able  to  furnish  a  man. 

We  have  the  privilege  of  rejecting  men  proffered  by  the  union  whom  we 
consider  to  be  undesirable,  but  on  the  other  hand  are  frequently  inconve- 
nienced because  of  our  not  being  able  to  get  men  on  account  of  their  unwill- 
ingness to  join  the  union,  and  in  some  cases  because  of  the  unions  not  being 
willing  to  admit  them  into  their  organizations.  This  tends  to  keep  a  great 
many  high  grade  men  out  of  our  factory  who  might  otherwise  be  employed. 
Many  union  men  are  decidedly  high  grade,  but  there  are  also  many  who  are 


70  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

very  medium  to  whom  we  must  pay  high  wages  in  order  to  obtain  sufficient 
men  to  turn  out  our  work. 

In  some  departments  we  are  not  allowed  by  the  unions  to  use  the  appren- 
tices on  work  which  really  teaches  them  anything. 

It  is  difficult  in  departments  which  are  unionized  to  take  a  man  from  the 
ranks  and  make  him  a  foreman,  because  of  the  labor  unions.  All  gang  bosses 
and  assistant  foremen  and  inspectors  must  be  members  of  the  union  and  it 
is  rather  difficult  for  a  man  in  these  positions,  from  which  the  foreman  should 
be  drawn,  to  be  sufficiently  loyal  to  the  company  to  secure  a  promotion  to 
the  position  of  foreman,  without  incurring  the  disfavor  of  his  fellow  members 
in  the  union. 

The  training  in  a  trade  school  should  not  be  so  intensive  that  it  will 
lower  the  boy's  ideals  and  make  him  anxious  to  use  what  he  has  learned 
to  make  as  much  money  as  possible  right  away  instead  of  simply  using  it 
as  a  guide  to  obtain  more  experience  and  deeper  knowledge,  with  the  expecta- 
tion of  being  paid  therefor  in  later  years. 

D.     Contractors  and  builders 

1.  There  is  room  for  vast  improvement  in  the  skilled  workmen  and  the 
main  trouble  lies  in  the  fact  that  there  is  no  apprentice  law  governing  the 
length  of  time  for  serving  in  any  trade.  Most  of  the  boys  now  learning  trades 
in  the  building  line  are  sons  of  men  now  at  the  trade  and  it  is  their  aim  to 
get  their  sons  in  possession  of  a  membership  card  in  order  to  get  the  higher 
wages,  without  serving  the  apprenticeship  necessary  to  make  them  a  finished 
mechanic.  Consequently  they  never  get  to  be  more  than  a  rough  workman, 
as  they  have  reached  as  high  a  standard  as  they  seem  to  care  to  attain, 
which  is  the  scale  demanded  by  the  union. 

In  regard  to  the  trade  schools  would  say  that  this  has  been  tried  by  the 
contractors  in  my  line  before,  and  we  found  great  difficulty  in  getting  the 
boys  to  attend.  I  think  the  same  amount  of  time  spent  in  actual  attendance 
of  the  work  in  the  trade  they  wish  to  follow  would  prove  to  be  much  better 
than  that  spent  in  a  trade  school. 

2.  But  while  we  have  a  well  organized  and  efficient  corps  of  the  skilled 
employees  needed  in  our  tugging,  dredging  and  other  marine  and  sub-marine 
work  for  which  we  are  contractors,  our  experience  is  that  there  is  a  noticeable 
lack  of  younger  skilled  men  coming  along  in  these  lines,  practically  all  of 
which,  as  well  as  all  other  labor  lines  covered  by  our  requirements,  are 
strongly  unionized. 

And  this  scarcity  of  these  younger  skilled  men  our  observation  leads  us 
to  believe  is  largely  attributable  to  a  disposition  on  the  part  of  the  older 
mechanics  to  afford  the  younger  ones  little  opportunity  and  aid  in  acquiring 
the  experience  requisite  to  the  acquisition  of  the  degree  of  ability  of  the 
elders. 

3.  We  need  foremen  who  have  a  better  general  education  and  a  wider 
outlook. 

4.  There  is  a  movement  on  foot  at  this  time  by  the  Electrical  Workers 
to  instruct  their  men  more  carefully  in  several  branches  of  the  electrical 
business,  they  having  purchased  instruments,  switchboard  and  testing  appa- 


CONDITIONS  IN  THE  SKILLED  INDUSTRIES  71 

ratus,  which  cost  something  over  $1,000,  and  they  are  requiring  their  mem- 
bership to  go  to  certain  set  meetings  and  be  instructed  and  to  listen  to  lec- 
tures on  different  branches  of  the  electrical  work,  as  could  be  covered  by 
the  apparatus  which  they  have  furnished,  all  of  which  we  think  is  going  to 
be  of  material  benefit  to  our  men,  and  if  a  school  as  suggested  by  you  were 
to  be  established,  and  we  could  persuade  the  men  to  go,  it  would  be  one  of 
the  best  things  possible  to  do. 

5.  We  have  no  right  to  expect  others  to  train  our  help  for  us,  and  if 
each  employer  would  give  time  and  assistance  to  train  his  own  help,  we  would 
have  all  that  would  be  required. 

6.  The  writer  believes  it  is  more  important  for  a  young  man  to  realize 
early  in  life  his  responsibility  as  a  future  citizen,  than  it  is  to  get  a  lot  of 
information  out  of  books.  There  is  a  time  in  the  life  of  every  boy,  when  he 
wants  to  be  a  man,  and  do  a  man's  work;  if  this  ambition  is  provided  for 
at  that  time,  he  becomes  a  good  citizen;  but,  if  by  laws  or  otherwise,  it  is 
defeated,  it  is  uphill  work  to  get  the  habit  later  on. 

E.  Printing 

1.  A  child  should  be  in  school  at  this  age  (fourteen  to  sixteen).  Our 
schools  should  teach  elementary  trade  work,  thereby  teaching  the  child  toward 
work,  instead  of  away  from  it,  as  now. 

2.  No.  Such  a  school  (preparatory  trade  school,  fourteen  to  sixteen 
years)  would  be  likely  to  make  the  boy  careless  and  indefinite.  Such  a  school 
should  be  a  special  trade  school,  teaching  a  definite  trade  a  part  of  the  time. 

3.  The  union  scale  kills  competition  in  skill  as  all  receive  practically  the 
same,  wage  for  a  given  department. 

4.  The  vital  point  of  the  whole  matter  is  that  where  labor  unions  con- 
trol a  trade  or  control  individual  offices  they  will  not  allow  enough  appren- 
tices to  be  instructed  to  take  care  of  the  ordinary  demands  of  that  trade, 
and  they  will  not  take  into  their  unions  men  who  have  received  instruction 
otherwise  than  as  the  apprenticeship  conditions  of  the  different  unions  provide. 

While  a  theoretical  knowledge  of  general  mechanics  from  the  ages  of 
fourteen  to  sixteen  will  be  of  decided  benefit  to  anyone  wishing  to  learn  a 
trade,  the  good  workmen  in  all  trades  are  produced  from  men  who  acquire 
their  trade  in  a  shop  in  actual  practice,  and  good  workmen  generally  are  made 
from  those  who  were  obliged  to  earn  their  living  at  an  early  age  and  have 
never  had  the  opportunity  of  attending  any  trade  or  technical  schools  after 
they  are  sixteen  years  of  age. 

5.  As  a  rule  the  union  supplies  inferior  men,  because  good  workmen  are 
usually  steadily  employed. 

6.  It  would  be  a  godsend  to  the  printing  business  to  have  a  school  where 
boys  and  girls  could  be  taught  the  business. 

7.  The  labor  question  is  the  sore  thumb  of  our  business. 

F.  Jewelry  manufacturing 

1.  Hardly  one  workman  in  ten  has  the  skill  and  taste  required  for  high- 
grade  work.  Yes,  surely,  such  a  school  (fourteen  to  sixteen)  would  help. 
Switzerland,  Germany  and  France  have  attained  high  rank  for  their  artisans. 


72  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Their  workmen  are  more  than  mechanics  through  schools  for  their  early 
training.  Training  in  drawing,  modeling,  etc.,  developing  the  artistic  taste, 
would  prepare  them  for  the  factory,  or  shop,  where  they  get  the  mechanical 
training. 

Our  trade  has  depended  on  Europe  for  skilled  workmen.  The  time  has 
come  when  we  should  train  them,  or  we  will  suffer  a  lack.  We  do  now. 
In  the  busiest  season  we  are  much  behind  our  opportunities  on  this  account. 

Analysis  of  the  comment  of  individual  employers 

While  there  is  considerable  difference  of  opinion  here,  there  are 
certain  uniformities  that  should  be  noted. 

In  the  first  place  there  is  a  general  recognition  that  present 
schooling  has  little  or  no  relation  to  industrial  occupations,  that  in 
the  case  of  many  if  not  most  of  the  children  of  Chicago  who  enter 
these  occupations,  it  has  failed  to  give  standards  of  efficiency  or 
even  adequate  general  intellectual  training. 

In  the  second  place  there  is  a  general  recognition  that  occupa- 
tional training  in  whatever  form  it  is  given  should  be  in  close  relation 
to  trade  and  shop  conditions. 

In  the  third  place  it  is  quite  widely  recognized  that  in  present 
industry  the  shop  alone  can  not  give  adequate  trade  training, 
because  work  is  so  highly  specialized  and  does  not  acquaint  the 
apprentice  with  all  processes,  thus  failing  to  produce  all-round 
workmen  and  those  who  can  and  are  willing  to  take  the  positions 
and  responsibilities  of  foremen. 

Finally  it  is  evident  that  the  causes  of  disagreement  between 
employers  and  organized  operatives  make  it  very  difficult  if  not 
impossible  for  them  to  properly  standardize  the  training  of  appren- 
tices. Clearly  the  one  who  suffers  most  from  this  situation  is  the 
child  who  does  not  receive,  during  the  apprenticeship  years,  the 
intellectual  and  occupational  training  which  he  needs. 

It  seems  evident  that  if  the  demands  of  industry  both  on  the  side 
of  the  employer  and  on  that  of  the  employed,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  interests  of  the  child  be  properly  safe-guarded,  the  shop  with 
its  methods  must  be  taken  into  the  school,  and  that  this  recon- 
structed school  must  set  the  standards  with  an  eye  single  to  the 
future  of  the  child,  and  unbiased  by  the  immediate  economic  inter- 
ests of  the  employer  and  the  union. 


ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR  73 


CHAPTER    IV 

ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR  IN  CHICAGO 
AND  IN  OTHER  CITIES 


The  very  favorable  attitude  exhibited  by  the  Chicago  Federation 
of  Labor  on  the  question  of  industrial  education  under  public 
auspices  [see  pages  74-80]  should  dispel  all  misgivings  as  to  the  pos- 
sibility of  serious  hostility  on  the  part  of  organized  labor  in  Chicago 
to  carefully  considered  provisions  for  industrial  education  in  the 
public  schools,  provisions  which  recognize  the  interests  of  labor  and 
arrange  for  the  representation  of  labor  in  the  conduct  of  such 
schools.  Indeed,  it  is  safe  to  assume,  from  these  results  and  from 
the  experience  of  other  cities,  that  organized  labor  in  Chicago  would 
readily  cooperate  in  an  intelligent  way  with  the  public-school  author- 
ities. This  is  still  further  indicated  by  the  cooperation  already 
given  by  unions  of  carpenters  and  masons  in  Chicago  with  the 
Apprentice  Schools  in  operation  since  1901. 

In  general  it  may  be  said  that  abundant  evidence1  exists  to  show 
that  organized  labor  throughout  the  country  is  not  hostile  to  indus- 
trial education  of  the  right  kind.  Labor  is  opposed  to  industrial 
schools  conducted  for  private  profit  and  providing  narrow  and  super- 
ficial training,  and  to  those  controlled  by  employers  and  conducted 
solely  for  the  employers'  interests  and  in  opposition  to  labor's  inter- 
est. But  to  public  schools  which  seek  the  cooperation  of  organized 
labor  and  employers  alike,  and  take  both  into  full  confidence,  which 
provide  thorough  and  practical  all-around  instruction,  organized 
labor  is  not  only  not  opposed  but  gives  its  strong  approval  and 
cooperation. 

In  the  case  of  all  industrial  schools  in  other  cities  visited  by  the 
committee's  representative2,  special  effort  was  made  to  find  out 
from  the  school  authorities  what  attitude  was  taken  toward   the 

1  Report  on  Industrial  Education,  American  Federation  of  Labor;  Report  of  Bureau 
of  Labor  Statistics,  New  York  State,  190S,  Part  I:  Annals  of  American  Academy  of 
Political  and  Social  Science,  January,  1909;  Dean:  The  Worker  end  the  State;  Bulletin 
No.  6,  National  Society  for  Promotion  of  Industrial  Education. 

3  See  Chapters  VI  and  VII. 


74  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

schools  by  organized  labor  in  the  community.  In  only  one  case  was 
any  opposition  reported,  and  that  was  in  connection  with  a  private 
school  largely  supported  by  employers'  associations.  Nor  is  the 
attitude  of  organized  labor  in  these  cities  a  purely  negative  one, 
resulting  from  lack  of  information  or  interest,  for,  in  the  case  of 
practically  all  the  public  industrial  schools  visited,  labor  bodies  are 
either  represented  on  advisory  committees,  or  have  considered  plans 
and  curricula  submitted  by  the  authorities  for  criticism  and  advice. 
In  Boston  an  official  investigation  of  industrial  schools,  covering  a 
week's  time,  was  made  by  a  representative  of  the  Massachusetts 
State  Branch  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor,  and  a  most 
favorable  report  was  returned. 

Attitude  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor 

The  following  account  of  the  attitude  of  the  Chicago  Federation 
of  Labor  is  taken  from  the  report  of  its  Committee  on  Schools. 
Since  the  total  membership  of  the  Chicago  Federation  is  about 
225, 0003,  and  since  52.8  per  cent  of  the  214  affiliated  local  unions 
answered  the  committee's  questions,  the  results  may  be  said  to  repre- 
sent the  attitude  of  more4  than  118,800  members.5  In  the  com- 
mittee's letter  to  the  affiliated  unions  special  attention  was  called  to 
the  fact  that  the  questions  referred  to  public  schools,  which  were 
designed  not  to  turn  out  finished  mechanics,  but  to  lay  a  foundation 
and  to  give  "  all-around  "  training  which  will  make  rapid  advance- 
ment possible  when  actual  trade  work  is  begun. 

The  Committee  on  Schools  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor  sent  the 
following  three  questions  to  the  214  affiliated  unions : 

1.  Do  you  favor  a  public  industrial  or  preparatory  trade  school 
which  would  endeavor  to  reach  boys  and  girls  between  fourteen  and  six- 
teen, that  now  leave  the  common  school  in  very  large  numbers  before 
graduation?  Stick  a  school  would  not  teach  a  trade,  but  would  give  a 
wide  acquaintance  with  materials  and  fundamental  industrial  processes, 

3  Statement  of  a  member  of  the  Federation  Committee. 

4  In  the  opinion  of  a  member  of  the  Federation  Committee,  the  replies  received  were 
from  the  larger  affiliated  local  unions. 

6  In  practically  all  cases  the  answers  were  obtained  by  a  vote  of  the  local  union,  or 
by  action  of  a  special  committee.  The  letters  sent  by  the  Federation  Committee  were 
stamped  with  the  official  seal  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor,  and  the  replies  received 
were  stamped  with  the  official  seal  of  the  affiliated  local  unions.  The  Committee  on  Schools 
acted  under  a  resolution  of  the  Federation  authorizing  the  investigation.  The  results 
were  reported,  as  here  given,  to  the  Federation  in  meeting  assembled,  and  were  accepted 
by  unanimous  vote  and  ordered  published.  The  report,  therefore,  represents  the  official 
action  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor. 


ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR 


75 


together  with  drawing  and  shop  mathematics,  with  the  object  of  giving  a 
better  preparation  for  entering  the  industries  at  sixteen  and  better  oppor- 
tunities for  subsequent  advancement? 

2.  Do  you  favor  public  trade  schools  for  boys  and  girls  between 
sixteen  and  eighteen,  that  would  give  two  years  of  practical  training, 
together  with  drawing  and  mathematics,  provided  the  graduates  of  such 
schools  should  serve  two  years  more  as  apprentices  or  improvers? 

3.  Do  you  favor  public  evening  industrial  schools  giving  instruction 
as  indicated  in  questions  1  and  2,  and  furnishing  also  supplemental  trade 
education  for  those  already  at  work  in  the  trades  during  the  day? 

Questions  1  and  2  are  the  same  questions,  word  for  word,  that  were  sent 
by  the  New  York  State  Department  of  Labor  to  2,451  unions  in  the  State  of 
New  York.6  A  comparison  can  therefore  be  made,  on  these  two  questions, 
between  the  attitude  of  organized  labor  in  Chicago  and  the  attitude  of 
organized  labor  in  the  State  of  New  York. 

In  the  letter  sent  by  the  Committee  to  the  Chicago  local  unions,  quota- 
tions were  made  from  the  Report  on  Industrial  Education  by  the  American 
Federation  of  Labor,  a  copy  of  which  was  sent  to  each  local  union.  A 
second  and  a  third  letter  were  sent  to  those  local  unions  which  did  not  reply 
to  the  first  or  second  letter.  In  the  second  and  third  letters  no  reference 
was  made  to  the  report  of  the  American  Federation  of  Labor.  In  all,  117 
replies  were  received  which  represent  54  per  cent  of  the  total  number  of 
affiliated  local  unions.  Four  of  the  unions  replying  did  not  answer  the 
questions. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  replies  received  to  each  ques- 
tion, the  number  answering  "  yes,"  the  number  answering  "  no,"  and  the  per 
cent  answering  "  yes  "  : 


Table  19. —  Replies  from  Chicago  Unions 


Number 
replying 

Number  answering 

Per  cent 

"Yes" 

"No" 

"Yes" 

Question  1 

111 
112 
112 

92 
88 
97 

19 
24 
15 

82.8 

Question  2 

78.5 

Question  3 

86.6 

Total 

335 

277 

5S 

82.6 

Table  20  gives  the  replies  to  questions  1  and  2  from  New  York  State 
unions,  and  Table  21  compares  these  replies  with  the  replies  from  Chicago 
unions  to  the  same  two  questions. 

•  Report  of  Bureau  of  Labor  Statistics,  New  York  State,  1908,  Part  I. 


76  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Table  20. —  Replies  from  New  York  State  Unions 


No.  of 

unions 

replying 

Number  answering7 

Per  cent 

"Yes" 

"No" 

"Yes" 

Question  1 

Question  2 

1,877 

1,877 

1,523 
1,303 

354 

574 

81.1 
69.4 

Total 

3,754 

2,826 

928 

75.2 

Table  21. —  Comparison  of  Replies  from   Chicago  Unions  with  Replies 
from  New  York  State  Unions 


Question  1 
Question  2 

Total . 


Per  cent  "Yes' 


Chicago  unions 


82.8 
78.5 


80.7 


N.  Y.  State 
unions 


81.1 
69.4 


75.2 


The  per  cent  answering  "  Yes  "  is  in  each  case  greater  for  the  Chicago 
unions  than  for  the  New  York  State  unions.  This  is  probably  explained  in 
part  by  the  influence  on  the  Chicago  unions  of  the  favorable  attitude  expressed 
by  the  American  Federation  of  Labor  in  its  Report  on  Industrial  Education,  a 
copy  of  which  was  sent  to  the  Chicago  unions. 

Attitude  of  skilled  workmen 

The  attitude  of  the  skilled  workman  on  the  question  of  industrial  train- 
ing is,  of  course,  of  special  importance,  because  his  interests  are  more  directly 
affected  by  such  training,  than  are  those  of  the  unskilled  workman. 

On  the  basis  of  skill  the  replies  from  Chicago  unions  may  be  classified, 
more  or  less  accurately,  into  77  replies  from  unions  in  skilled  occupations, 
and  36  from  unions  in  unskilled  occupations.  Analysis  of  the  total  number 
of  "  No's  "  received  shows  that  all  but  4  came  from  unions  in  the  skilled 
occupations,  as  set  forth  in  the  following  table. 


7  The  numbers  classified  in  the  New  York  report  as  "  qualified  yes  "  and  "  qualified 
no  "  are  here  counted  as  "  yes  "  and  "  no,"  respectively,  to  correspond  with  the  classifica- 
tion used  for  the  Chicago  replies. 


ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR 
Table  22. —  Number  of  Unions  Answering  "  No  "8 


77 


Question  1 .  . 
Question  2 .  . 
Question  3 .  . 

Total 


Skilled 
occupations 

Unskilled 
occupations 

15 

20 
11 

4 
4 
4 

46 


12 


The  results  in  Table  22  are  what  one  would  naturally  expect  —  that  the 
opposition  which  is  shown  by  organized  labor  to  industrial  schools  should 
come  mainly  from  the  skilled  occupations.  The  replies  also  show,  however, 
that  about  80  per  cent  of  the  unions  in  the  skilled  occupations  answered 
"  Yes  "  to  question  1,  about  74  per  cent  answered  "  Yes  "  to  question  2,  and 
about  83  per  cent  to  question  3. 

The  attitude  of  the  carpenters  and  joiners  may  be  of  special  importance 
because  of  their  interest  in  the  Apprentice  Schools  for  carpenters  conducted 
by  the  public-school  authorities.  Of  the  nine  carpenters'  unions  replying-. 
two  were  not  sufficiently  interested  to  answer  the  questions,  one  way  or  the 
other.  Of  the  remaining  seven,  all  answered  "Yes"  to  question  3;  all 
but  one  answered  "  Yes  "  to  question  1,  and  all  but  two  answered  "  Yes  "  to 
question  2. 

Comments  of  individual  unions 

The  letter  addressed  to  the  local  unions  contained  the  statement  that 
the  Committee  on  Schools  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of  Labor  would  wel- 
come any  suggestions  or  comments  which  the  local  union  cared  to  make 
on  any  of  the  questions  or  on  the  general  subject.  In  response  to  this  state- 
ment a  number  of  very  intelligent  and  discriminating  comments  were 
received.  All  of  the  comments  which  seemed  to  have  significance  are  here 
quoted,  regardless  of  which  side  of  the  question  is  favored. 

Thirty-four  quotations  in  all  are  given.  The  comments  are  arranged  in 
groups,  each  group  being  more  or  less  homogeneous.  Special  attention  is 
called  to  the  comments  in  group  VI,  which  refer  to  the  status  of  trade-school 
graduates  and  to  the  importance  of  securing  State  legislation  regulating 
apprenticeship  conditions. 

Group  I 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Yes ;  we  are  always  glad  to  see  the  boys  and  girls  get  the 
chance  to  help  themselves. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Yes ;  if  you  make  all-around  mechanics  of  them,  not  spe- 
cialists. 

8  The  unions  regarded  as  in  skilled  occupations,  in  Table  22,  are:  bakers  and  con- 
fectioners, blacksmiths  and  helpers,  carpenters  and  joiners,  carriage  and  wagon  workers, 
cigarmakers,  coopers,  gardeners  and  florists,  garmentworkers,  lithographers,  painters  and 
decorators,  photoengravers,  piano  workers,  printers,  pressmen  (printing),  sheet-metal 
workers,  tailors,  watch-case  engravers,  two  joint  councils  or  assemblies,  and  one  unknown 
union.  The  unions  regarded  as  in  unskilled  occupations  are:  bartenders,  beer  bottlers, 
mailers,  lake  seamen  and  switchmen. 


78  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Q.  1.  Yes;  provided  it  would  not  be  made  an  excuse  for  trying  "fads" 
on  the  children. 

Q.  2,  3.  Yes ;  provided  cultural  studies  be  not  eliminated  from  the  course 
of  study,  and  that  these  schools  be  conducted  in  the  same  buildings  and  in 
connection  with  the  common  school. 

Q.  1.    No;   because  it  would  make  for  enslavement  of  children. 

Q.  1.     No ;   we  favor  a  high-school  education  for  all  children. 

Q.  2.     Yes ;    provided  such  education  is  included  in  high-school  course. 

Group  II 

Q.  3.  Yes ;  but  would  it  be  fair  to  require  the  tired  youngsters  to  study 
after  perhaps  a  big  day's  work? 

Q.  3.  If  the  youngsters  work  during  the  day  it  would  do  them  little 
good  to  attend  evening  schools. 

Q.  3.     No;    they  work  too  many  hours  as  it  is. 

Group  III 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Your  communication  in  reference  to  Industrial  Education 
did  not  seem  to  appeal  to  our  local  and  same  was  ordered  received  and  filed 
at  one  of  our  large  meetings.  It  seems  as  though  the  workers  do  not  care  to 
take  up  such  matters  unless  some  effect  of  same  concerns  them,  directly  injur- 
ing them  in  following  their  trade. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Regarding  enclosed  folder,  beg  to  say  the  carpenters  of  this 
local  are  not  interested  in  this  question,  as  they  have  a  school  of  their  own 
in  which  all  apprentices  must  go  three  months  every  year.  This  goes  to 
show  anyway  that  they  are  in  favor  of  industrial  schools  to  a  certain  extent- 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  We  are  somewhat  embarrassed  to  fully  comprehend  the  real 
purpose  of  the  proposition.  We  realize  that  some  kind  of  system  should  be 
adopted  whereby  the  workers  of  our  community  would  have  equal  opportunity 
to  give  their  children  such  education  as  will  compensate  them  equivalently 
for  their  outlay.  The  question  of  a  school  for  boys  and  girls  between  the 
ages  of  sixteen  and  eighteen  seems  somewhat  beyond  the  possibility  of  the 
workman  to  afford.  On  this  question  our  suggestion  would  be  to  have  it 
along  the  lines  of  municipal  ownership. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  I  do  not  think  many  of  us  have  much  knowledge  of  the  sub- 
ject, and  so  give  you  the  opinion  for  what  it  is  worth. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  These  questions  were  endorsed  by  our  local,  but  knowledge 
of  the  subject  seems  limited. 

Group  IV 

Q.  1.  Yes.  Q.  2,  3.  Yes ;  provided  the  teachers  of  the  various  crafts  had 
worked  at  least  three  years  as  journeymen  at  the  crafts  they  taught;  other- 
wise, no. 

Q.  2.    Yes ;   if  under  supervision  of  mechanics  affiliated  with  labor  unions. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Not  until  we  voters  can  have  representatives  on  the  school 
board. 

Q.  1.  Yes;  provided  organized  labor  has  voting  majority  in  Board  of 
Education. 


ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR  79 

Q.  1,  2.  No;  because  the  interests  would  see  to  it  that  no  education 
would  be  given  to  the  pupils  along  trades-union  lines. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  No;  for  the  reason  that  such  an  institution  would  be  simply 
placing  organized  labor  in  greater  jeopardy  than  at  present;  for  you  must 
realize  that  it  would  not  be  possible  to  instil  any  of  the  principles  of  unionism 
into  such  students  —  in  fact,  even  the  mention  of  such  ideas  would  meet 
with  the  strongest  of  opposition ;  therefore  we  would  urge  action  against  the 
establishment  of  such  a  public  institution. 

Would  suggest  the  establishment  of  schools  on  such  lines  by  the  inter- 
national bodies  of  the  different  trades  —  the  same  to  be  so  conducted  as  to 
permit  of  evening  sessions,  and  no  doubt  but  what  they  would  be  attended 
by  a  class  of  students  who  really  would  have  a  desire  to  learn  a  trade  and 
become  proficient  in  it. 

Group  V 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  Yes ;  provided  these  schools  are  conducted  for  the  benefit  of 
boys  and  girls  only,  and  not  to  be  used  as  a  profit  system  for  somebody  else. 

Q.  2.    Yes;    provided  it  is  not  made  a  breeding  bed  for  scabs. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  We  believe  that  the  industrial  school  will  develop  into  a 
recruiting  station  for  the  unfair  employer. 

Q.  1,  2.  Do  not  favor  this  kind  of  school  because  it  would  cause  an 
over-production  of  skilled  mechanics. 

Q.  1,  2,  3.  No.  We  do  not  think  it  advisable  to  use  public  money  to 
play  into  the  hand  of  the  manufacturers.  Those  whose  children  would  be 
able  to  attend  a  free  trade  school,  as  a  rule,  are  also  able  to  pay  for  that 
instruction. 

Q.  2.  No.  We  believe  it  unwise  to  permit  school  boards  to  establish 
trade  schools,  because  if  a  certain  kind  of  men,  interested  in  a  certain  kind 
of  employment,  obtained  control  of  the  schools,  our  schools  would  simply  be 
used  to  turn  out  a  surplus  of  labor  for  the  trades  in  which  certain  employers 
sought  to  cheapen  labor. 

Group  VI 

Q.  2.  Yes;  but  would  make  the  term  apprenticeship  three  years,  to  con- 
form to  the  present  laws  of  organizations  making  the  apprenticeship  end  at 
age  of  twenty-one  years. 

Q.  2.  No ;  all  graduates  should  serve  their  full  time  under  regulated 
union  laws. 

Q.  3.     Yes ;    to  those  holding  membership  in  a  recognized  union. 

Q.  2.  No ;  blacksmiths  rule  that  an  apprentice  must  serve  four  consecu- 
tive years  at  practical  work. 

Q.  2.  No;  because  we  have  found  it  detrimental  to  our  apprentice  sys- 
tem, which  requires  four  years  of  practical  training. 

Q.  2.     Yes;    provided  that  no  employer  shall  employ  them  as  full-fl 
craftsmen,  such  to  be  prohibited  by  an  act  of  legislature. 

Q.  1,  2.  We  do  not  believe  that  the  present  laws  are  such  as  to  make 
public  trade  schools  giving  instructions,  as  set  forth  in  questions  1  and  2, 
advisable  from  an  organization  point  of  view.    It  is  worthy  of  note  that  every 


80  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

branch  of  industry  so  supplied  by  schools  is  over-run  with  student  workmen, 
little  or  no  organization,  small  wages,  etc. 

On  the  other  hand,  if  an  approved  apprentice  term  can  be  enforced, 
making  such  term  a  necessity  by  law,  before  entering  the  trades,  we  believe 
that  much  good  would  result  from  such  teaching  as  set  forth  in  question  1, 
enforcing  said  term  to  protect  labor  organizations  in  case  of  strike  or  lockout, 
when  there  would  be  a  great  temptation  for  the  bosses  to  work  these  near- 
mechanics. 

We  urge  careful  consideration  before  disposing  of  this  matter,  as  it  is  a 
subject  of  vast  importance  to  union  labor  movement. 

Attitude  of  labor  leaders  in  Chicago 

In  addition  to  the  above  report  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of 
Labor,  the  following  specific  statements  of  labor's  attitude,  taken 
from  articles  by  three  of  Chicago's  citizens  prominent  in  the  ranks 
of  labor,  will  be  of  interest. 

1.     By  Luke  Grant,  Labor  Editor,  Chicago  Record-Herald? 

The  specialization  of  industry  is  rapidly  dehumanizing  the  worker.  When 
he  makes  a  certain  part  of  a  machine  he  does  not  in  his  mind  see  a  picture 
of  the  finished  product,  as  did  the  all-around  mechanic  in  the  days  before 
we  had  specialization  in  industry. 

You  who  have  not  had  the  actual  experience  cannot  appreciate  the  real 
pleasure  it  gives  a  workman  to  look  at  a  piece  of  work  he  has  done  well. 
He  takes  as  much  pleasure  in  looking  at  a  piece  of  perfect  mechanical  work 
as  the  painter  does  in  admiring  a  fine  picture,  or  the  writer  does  in  reading 
a  good  book.  This  is  a  phase  of  the  problem  which  should  have  attention, 
as  well  as  the  phase  dealing  with  increased  productivity.  If  it  does  not,  we 
will  in  the  near  future  have  a  class  of  workers  mentally  and  morally  deficient, 
and  a  class  of  work  that  will  not  stand  in  competition  in  the  markets  of  the 
world. 

This  forms  what  I  mean  by  the  "  human  side  "  of  the  problem.  If  indus- 
trial education  and  trade  schools  will  serve  to  give  the  boy  that  thorough 
and  complete  knowledge  of  the  trade,  which  he  is  denied  in  the  modern  fac- 
tory and  workshop,  I  am  satisfied  you  will  find  no  opposition  on  the  part  of 
the  wage-earner.  You  will  receive  his  hearty  cooperation  and  support,  for 
the  skilled  mechanic  cannot  help  feeling  a  pang  as  he  sees  his  trade  disap- 
pearing. 

Let  us  unite  to  do  all  in  our  power  to  lessen  the  cost  of  production,  but 
let  us  not  forget  that  if  we  cheapen  product  at  the  expense  of  the  health  and 
mental  view  of  our  workers,  the  ends  will  not  justify  the  means. 

9  Taken  from  Bulletin  No.  6,  National  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Industrial  Educa- 
tion. 


ATTITUDE  OF  ORGANIZED  LABOR  81 

2.  By  W.  B.  Prescott,  Secretary,  International  Typographical 
Union  Commission  on  Supplemental  Trade  Education,  Chicago.10 

For  employing  printers  to  say  they  would  thoroughly  "  teach "  a  boy 
the  trade  was  largely  a  figure  of  speech ;  with  few  exceptions  they  could 
not  if  they  would,  as  they  lacked  the  facilities.  The  boy  would  be  turned 
over  to  a  foreman  or  superintendent,  who  is  always  harassed  with  demands 
that  he  reduce  the  cost  of  production,  and  who  in  turn  is  ever  urging  those 
under  him  to  greater  effort  or  devising  plans  to  meet  the  insistent  demand 
for  an  increased  output. 

In  these  circumstances  it  is  not  surprising  that  the  foreman's  chief  desire 
is  not  to  teach  the  boy  the  trade,  but  to  discover  how  he  can  be  used  most 
profitably.  If  the  boy  shows  special  aptness  for  some  simple  operation,  his 
"apprenticeship"  too  often  consists  in  doing  that  one  thing.  If  he  acquires 
a  general  knowledge  of  the  trade,  it  is  as  best  he  may  by  the  rule  of  thumb. 

This  system  has  been  producing  so-called  specialists,  and  some  are 
inclined  to  say  it  is  all  right  in  an  age  of  specialists,  as  they  point  to  this 
lawyer  or  that  physician  or  financier  who  has  had  unbounded  success  by 
following  a  specialty  in  his  profession.  They  forget  that  the  physician  is 
first  well  grounded  in  the  principles  and  practice  of  medicine,  and  the  attor- 
ney in  the  principles  of  law,  before  selecting  their  specialties.  That  general 
knowledge  is  of  great  assistance  to  them.  The  workman  trained  in  the 
manner  just  described  may  be  a  specialist  at  his  trade,  but  it  is  because  that 
one  operation  is  the  extent  of  his  knowledge  of  his  vocation.  In  the  highly 
specialized  trades  the  dread  dead  line,  or  age  limit,  is  placed  at  an  early 
year,  and  precarious  employment  is  the  rule.  Not  being  transferable  from 
one  class  of  work  to  another,  this  kind  of  "  specialist  "  is  the  victim  of  the 
greatest  blight  that  can  come  athwart  a  wage-earner's  life  —  unsteady  employ- 
ment. While  the  old  apprenticeship  system  was  decaying  the  quality  of  the 
printed  page  was  improving.  The  improvement  is  due  in  great  measure  to 
the  influence  of  commercial  artists  who  design  work  to  the  last  detail,  which 
the  artisan  copies  with  more  or  less  fidelity.  This  precludes  even  the  most 
capable  compositors  exercising  their  ingenuity  or  skill,  thereby  reducing 
them  to  the  grade  of  mere  copyists,  which  is  fatal  to  the  development  of 
originality  or  mental  growth. 

The  International  Typographical  Union  has  been  included  in  the  general 
denunciation  of  trade  unions  for  being  opposed  to  technical  education. 
Frankly,  it  is  opposed  to  many  of  the  schemes  being  fostered  under  the  cloak 
of  trade  education.  It  is  opposed  to  educational  efforts  that  are  more  intent 
on  making  money  for  their  promoters  than  on  benefiting  the  scholars.  It 
is  also  opposed  to  schools  that  graduate  inferior  workmen.  The  typograph- 
ical union  holds  it  to  be  folly  to  erect  special  machinery  to  entice  men  or 
boys  to  take  up  trades  that  are  already  overcrowded.  In  short,  the  union 
contends  —  and  it  knows  —  that  there  is  no  dearth  of  mechanics  and  artisans, 
but  the  great  army  of  them  are  not  as  skillful  as  is  desirable.  This  is  not 
their   fault,  nor  that  of  their  employers,  but  of  industrialism.     In   helping 

10  Taken  from  The  Annals  of  the  American  Academy  of  Political  and  Social  Science, 
January,  1909. 


82  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

these  to  better  things,  the  union  believes  it  is  subserving  the  interests  of  the 
individual,  the  craft  and  society,  and  that  is  why  the  union  printers  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada  are  spending  approximately  $15,000  a  year  to 
advance  the  interests  of  supplemental  trade  education. 

3.  By  John  Fitzpatrick,  President  of  the  Chicago  Federation  of 
Labor.11 

I  am  in  favor  generally  of  industrial  education.  I  believe  that  all  trades 
can  be  taught,  and  consider  that  the  aim  of  the  trade  school  should  be  to 
give  the  best  preparatory  and  practical  education  possible. 

The  question  as  to  how  far  the  trade  schools  can  give  preparation  for 
the  trade  can  only  be  determined  by  experience. 

I  would  have  all  trade  schools  open  to  all  —  sex,  creed,  color  or  nation- 
ality should  not  debar  any  one.  I  favor  preparatory  trade-school  work  under 
public  auspices,  but  do  not  favor  trade  schools  conducted  by  manufacturing 
concerns.  I  deprecate  certain  schools  now  organized ;  referring  in  this  to 
correspondence  and  other  trade  schools,  which  cannot  give  practical  education, 
and  because  of  this  deceive  both  the  student  and  the  employer. 

The  American  Federation  of  Labor 

The  following  quotation  from  the  Report  on  Industrial  Educa- 
tion, by  the  American  Federation  of  Labor,  also  throws  light  on 
labor's  attitude. 

We  believe  that  as  much  attention  should  be  given  to  the  proper  educa- 
tion of  those  who  are  at  work  in  our  industries  as  is  now  given  to  those  who 
prepare  to  enter  professional  and  managerial  careers,  simply  to  balance  jus- 
tice and  make  it  necessary  to  give  to  the  wage-earning  classes  and  the  com- 
mon industries  such  equivalent  as  we  can  for  what  the  present  schools  are 
doing  for  the  wealthier  classes,  as  well  as  for  the  professional  and  managing 
vocations. 

Our  movement  in  advocating  industrial  education  protests  most  emphat- 
ically against  the  elimination  from  cur  public  school  system  of  any  line  of 
learning  now  taught.  Education,  technically  or  industrially,  must  be  sup- 
plementary to  and  in  connection  with  our  modern  school  system.  That  for 
which  our  movement  stands  will  tend  to  make  better  workers  of  our  future 
citizens,  better  citizens  of  our  future  workers. 


11  Taken   from  Bulletin   No.  3,   National  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Industrial  Edu- 
cation. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  83 


CHAPTER  V 

INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  CHICAGO 


This  chapter  presents  —  I,  a  description,  with  comments,  of  pub- 
lic industrial  schools  and  courses  in  Chicago;  II,  an  outline  state- 
ment of  present  provisions  for  public  industrial  education  in  day 
schools  in  Chicago  and  in  five  other  cities,  viewing  each  city  as  a 
whole;  and  III,  a  description  of  some  private  industrial  schools  in 
Chicago.    All  the  schools  described  were  visited  by  the  writer. 

I.    Public  Industrial  Schools  and  Courses 

High  Schools 

1.  In  the  Chicago  high  schools  four  years  of  manual  or  techni- 
cal training  are  offered  in  each  of  three  schools.  In  eleven  other 
high  schools  one  year  of  manual  training  is  offered  at  present.  The 
school  administration  is  working  toward  the  plan  of  having  the  first 
two  years  of  manual  training  and  vocational  courses  in  all  high 
schools  except  the  three  technical  high  schools,  which  "  will  receive 
those  pupils  only  who  wish  to  continue  their  vocational  work  after 
two  years  and  will  give  them  advanced  technical  training  beyond 
that  now  offered  in  the  technical  high  schools  of  Chicago."1 

Before  the  school  year  of  1910-11  the  work  of  the  three  technical 
high  schools  was  in  what  may  be  regarded  as  a  stage  of  transition 
from  purely  manual  training  work  to  truly  technical  work.2  For, 
in  the  first  place,  a  considerably  larger  portion  of  the  school  time3 
has  been  given  to  shopwork  and  drawing  than  is  given  to  these  sub- 
jects in  the  usual  manual-training  school,4  and  yet  this  amount 
of  time  is  not  sufficient  to  adequately  meet  the  needs  of  technical 
education  in  the  high  school. 

1  Report  of  the  Superintendent  of  Schools,  1910. 

2  The  distinction  here  made  between  the  manual-training  high  school  and  the  truly 
technical  high  school  is  about  the  same  as  that  presented  in  the  report  on  The  Piece  of 
Industries  in  Public  Education,  by  a  committee  of  the  National  Council  of  Education, 
July,  1910. 

3  From  two-fifths  to  one-half,  in  the  scientific  course.  In  this  statement,  and  simi- 
larly throughout  the  report,  the  time  devoted  to  physical  training,  study,  opening  exercises, 
and  music,  is  not  counted  in  computing  the  relative  amounts  of  time  given  to  shopwork 
and  drawing,  on  the  one  hand,  and  to  academic  subjects,  on  the  other. 

*  For  a  statement  of  the  amount  of  time  given  to  manual  work  in  150  high  schools, 
see  page  87  of  the  report  mentioned  in  note  2,  above. 


84  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

In  the  second  place,  the  shopwork  differs  from  that  done  in  the 
usual  manual  training  high  school,  in  that  the  projects  made  partake 
less  of  the  character  of  mere  "  exercises  "  and  more  of  the  character 
of  articles  of  real  use. 

In  addition  to  the  usual  manual  training  "  exercises,"  pieces  of  furniture, 
and  articles  for  ornament,  the  following  objects  for  more  practical  use  were 
made  in  one  technical  high  school  in  1909-10 :  6  speed  lathes,  1  two-cylinder 
engine,  20  metal  counting  slates  for  blind  children,  3  metal  clock  faces  for 
neighboring  school,  electric  motors  (complete),  35  molder's  benches  (iron), 
turning  chisels,  machine  tools,  and  various  parts  of  machines.  For  the  year 
L910-11,  machinery  and  furniture  to  the  value  of  $3,000  to  $5,00  was  being 
made  for  the  Board  of  Education. 

In  another  technical  high  school  the  following  products  were  under  con- 
struction in  1909-10 :  6  speed  lathes,  12  jack  screws,  6  high-speed  drill- 
presses,  13  marine  engines,  electric  motor,  2  rheostats,  iron  pulleys,  machine 
tools,  and  various  parts  of  machines. 

In  the  third  technical  high  school  comparatively  little  work  of  the  above 
character  is  done. 

It  should  be  added,  that  a  semester  course  has  been  given  in  the 
fourth  year,  in  elementary  engineering  or  electrical  construction, 
which  is  technical  in  character. 

In  the  third  place,  comparatively  little  has  been  done  in  relating 
the  academic  instruction  to  the  shopwork  and  to  industrial  needs. 

Only  one  of  the  three  technical  high  schools,  so  far  as  could  be  learned, 
has  done  definitely  planned  work  of  this  kind  in  day  classes.  The  principal 
of  this  school  states  that  about  one-fourth  of  the  compositions  in  English 
classes  are  based  on  shop  and  industrial  subjects.  These  compositions  are 
criticized  by  the  shop  instructor  and  by  the  English  instructor.  Outside  read- 
ing is  assigned  on  the  lives  of  great  inventors,  discoverers,  and  explorers- 
In  physiography  about  six  weeks  is  given  to  a  study  of  trees  and  ores.  The 
study  of  trees  includes  elementary  forestry,  the  structure  of  the  various 
woods  used  in  the  school,  and  the  location  of  the  forest  regions  of  the  world. 
The  work  on  ores  includes  an  examination  of  the  samples  of  iron  ores,  the 
locations  of  ore  beds,  smelters,  rolling  mills,  coal  fields,  shipping  routes, 
and  the  making  of  steel  and  coke. 

In  the  night  classes  of  this  school  some  interesting  work  is  given  in  shop 
mathematics,  including  mensuration,  speed  of  pulleys  and  gearing,  gearing  of 
the  lathe  and  screw  thread  calculations,  calculations  of  spur,  bevel,  spiral  and 
worm  gearing;  speed  of  machine  tools,  elementary  principles  of  graphic 
statics,  elements  of  theory  of  stresses  as  applied  to  machine  design,  use  of 
tables  of  natural  functions  and  of  logarithms  in  shop  calculations ;  the  slide 
rule. 

2.  With  the  inauguration  of  the  two-year  vocational  courses  in 
September,  1910,  the  Chicago  high  schools  begin  to  offer  instruction 


IX  DUST  RIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  85 

distinctly  industrial  in  character.  These  two-year  courses  are  a 
part  of  a  completely  revised  curriculum  for  the  high  schools  which 
went  into  effect  the  second  semester  of  1910-11.  There  are  21 
courses  of  study  in  the  revised  curriculum,  11  being  four-year  courses 
and  10  two-year  courses.5 

Of  the  four-year  courses,  five  may  be  regarded  as  vocational: 
one  commercial  —  the  business  course ;  and  four  industrial  courses 
—  manual  training,  builders,  household  arts,  architectural.  The 
particular  subjects  offered  in  the  manual  training  and  builders' 
courses  are  as  follows  : 

7. —  Manual  Training  Course 

FIRST   YEAR 

First  Semester:  Weeks 

English    20 

Woodworking   20 

Mechanical  drawing  20 

Freehand   drawing    20 

Algebra    20 

Physiology   20 

Physical   education    20 


eriods 

Credits 

4 

.4 

10 

.5 

4 

.3 

1 

.05 

4 

.4 

5 

.4 

2 

.1 

30  2.15 


4 

.4 

10 

.5 

4 

.3 

1 

.05 

4 

.4 

5 

.4 

2 

.1 

30  2.1 ; 


Second  Semester: 

English    20 

Woodworking   20 

Mechanical   drawing  20 

Freehand   drawing    20 

Algebra    20 

Physiography     (with     special     reference     to 

woods  and  ores) 20 

Physical  education   20 


SECOND    YEAR 

First  Semester: 

English    20 

Foundry,   forge  and  patternmaking 20 

Mechanical  drawing   20 

Plane  geometry   20 

Physical  education    20 

24  1.7 

6  For  the  soke  of  completeness,  the  commercial  courses  are  included  in  the  discussion 
which  follows. 


4  .4 

0  .5 

4  .3 

4  .4 

2  .1 


86  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Second  Semester:  Weeks 

English   20 

Foundry,  forge  and  patternmaking 20 

Mechanical   drawing   20 

Plane  geometry   20 

Physical  education   20 


Periods 

Credits 

4 

.4 

10 

.5 

4 

.3 

4 

.4 

2 

.1 

24  1.7 


5 

1.0 

5 

1.0 

6 

1.0 

6 

1.0 

8 

.4 

4 

.4 

1 

.05 

4 

.4 

6 

.5 

2 

.1 

25  1.85 


Choose  one  of  the  following: 

Foreign   language    40 

Biology  40 

Elementary  physics  40 

^Chemistry    40 

THIRD  YEAR 

First  Semester: 

Machine-shop  practice 20 

English    20 

Freehand  drawing 20 

Mathematics    20 

Physics    20 

Physical   education    20 


Second  Semester: 

Machine-shop  practice  20 

Machine  or  architectural  drawing 20 

Freehand  drawing 20 

Physics    20 

Mathematics    20 

Physical  education    20 

25  1.75 

Choose  one  of  the  following: 

History    40  4  .4 

Language    40  5  1.0 


FOURTH    YEAR 

First  Semester: 

United   States   history 20 

Machine  or  architectural  drawing 20 

English    20 

Physical   education   20 


13  1.1 

*  If  chemistry  is  not  taken   now  it  must  be   taken  in  the   fourth  year. 


8 

.4 

4 

.3 

1 

.05 

6 

.5 

4 

.4 

2 

.1 

4  .4 

3  .2 

4  .4 
2  .1 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  87 

Second  Semester:  Weeks     Periods     Credits 

Civics     20             4  .4 

Machine   or  architectural  drawing 20            3  .2 

Trigonometry    20            4  .4 

Physical  education   20            2  .1 

13  1.1 

Electives: 

Chemistry    40             6  1.0 

Language    40            5  1-° 

English    20             4  .4 

Electrical  or  gas  engine  construction 40            6  1.0 

Electrical  or  gas  engine  construction 20            4  .4 

Freehand  drawing  40            6  .8 

Advanced  physics   20            6  .5 

Advanced  chemistry   20             6  .5 

One  semester  of  English  must  be  chosen  during  this  year  by 
those  who  have  not  taken  a  foreign  language. 


8. —  Builders'  Course 

FIRST  YEAR 
First  Semester:  Weeks    Periods 

Business  English    20 

Mensuration  geometry    20 

Physiology    20  5 

Architectural  drawing 20 

Carpentry    20 

Physical  education  20 


2 

29 


Second  Semester: 

Business   English    20 

Mensuration  geometry   20 

Freehand  drawing  20 

Mechanical   drawing    20 

Carpentry    20  10 

Physical  education  20  2 

28 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

SECOND  YEAR 

First  Semester:                                                                      Weeks  Periods 

Business   English    20  4 

Arithmetic   and  bookkeeping 20  4 

Chemistry   20  6 

Architectural   drawing    20  4 

Bricklaying,  masonry,  etc 20  10 

Physical   education  20  2 

30 

Second  Semester: 

Business  English    20  4 

Arithmetic  and  bookkeeping 20  4 

Chemistry    20  6 

Architectural   drawing    20  4 

Bricklaying,   masonry,   etc 20  10 

Physical    education    20  2 

3P 
THIRD   YEAR 

First  Semester: 

English    20  4 

Mathematics,  including  trigonometry  and  surveying. .     20  4 

Physics     20  6 

Architectural   drawing    20  4 

Metal   work    20  10 

Physical  education  20  2 

30 

Second  Semester: 

English    20  4 

Mathematics,  including  trigonometry  and  surveying. .     20  4 

Physics     20  6 

Architectural    drawing    20  4 

Metal   work    20  10 

Physical  education  20  2 

30 
FOURTH    YEAR 

First  Semester: 

Sanitation   20  4 

Building  specifications  and  estimating 20  4 

Industrial  history   20  4 

Electrical   wiring    20  10 

Freehand  drawing   20  4 

Physical  education  20  2 

28 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  89 

Second  Semester:                                                                     Weeks  Periods 

Strength  of  materials 20  4 

Building  contracts  and  ordinances 20  4 

Industrial  history  20  4 

Electrical   wiring    20  10 

Freehand  drawing   20  4 

Physical  education  20  2 

28 

Comment.  The  distinctive  features  of  the  four  industrial 
courses  are : 

(1)  A  slight  increase  in  the  amount  of  time  given  to  shopwork 
and  drawing.6 

(2)  The  "industrialized"  character  of  some  of  the  academic 
subjects,  such  as  industrial  history,  business  English,  civic  and 
industrial  Chicago. 

With  repect  to  both  of  these  features  there  is  evident  an  effort 
to  make  the  four  courses  truly  vocational  in  character.  If,  how- 
ever, they  are  to  reach  their  full  development,  the  close  relation  of 
the  academic  subjects  to  industrial  needs  should  be  carried  to  still 
other  subjects  than  those  indicated  in  the  present  outlines.  If  the 
physics,  chemistry  and  mathematics  are  to  be  of  the  greatest  service 
in  the  industrial  courses,  the  content  of  these  subjects  should  be 
closely  adapted  to  the  particular  needs  in  the  different  courses. 

Under  present  conditions  it  is  difficult  to  organize  the  subjects 
of  history,  mathematics  and  science  in  their  direct  application  to 
industrial  needs.  This  is  partly  due  to  a  lack  of  suitable  text  and 
reference  books,  and  to  the  prevailing  influence  of  college  entrance 
requirements  on  secondary  school  curricula.  Rut  the  need  and  the 
opportunity  for  such  instruction  in  technical  high-school  courses 
are  both  very  great.  Some'  schools  are  now  making  commendable 
efforts  in  this  direction.7 

In  the  household  arts  course,  something  less  than  half  the  time 
is  given  to  handwork,  including  art,  an  increase  of  only  two  periods 
a  week  over  former  courses.  This  is  less  time  than  is  given  to  these 
subjects  in  the  industrial  courses  for  girls  in  the  high  schools  at 

9  An  average  of  about  51  per  cent  of  the  school  time  in  the  revised  manual-training 
course,  as  compared  with  45  per  cent  in  the  former  scientific  course. 

7  Reference  is  here  made  to  subjects  of  study  outlined  in  Chapter  VIII  of  this  report, 
and  to  outlines  of  mathematics,  physiography  and  English,  prepared  at  the  Lane  Technical 
High  School,  Chicago. 


90  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Boston,  Cleveland  and  Cincinnati  [see  pages  193-195].  These  cities 
also  provide  for  specialization  in  the  last  two  or  three  years  of  the 
course,  in  order  to  prepare  definitely  for  the  vocations  open  to  girls. 
No  specialization  is  offered  in  the  corresponding  course  in  Chicago. 

In  the  manual  training  course  the  time  given  to  shop  and  draw- 
ing is  still  somewhat  less  than  in  the  Cincinnati  and  Cleveland 
courses,8  and  the  opportunity  for  specialization  is  not  so  great.9  In 
Cincinnati  the  usual  four  years  of  manual  training  is  completed  in 
the  first  two  years,  five-eighths  of  the  school  time  being  given  to  shop 
and  drawing.  In  the  last  two  years  students  specialize  in  some  trade 
as  apprentices,  spending  alternate  weeks  in  factory  and  school,  the 
shopwork  for  the  week  in  school  being  specialized.  The  same  gen- 
eral plan  is  followed  in  Cleveland,  the  usual  four  years  of  manual 
training  being  completed  in  the  first  two  and  one-third  years.  Both 
Cincinnati  and  Cleveland  require  a  longer  school  week  for  the  tech- 
nical courses  than  Chicago  requires.  In  the  Chicago  manual  training 
course  21  to  25  hours  (60  minutes  each)  a  week  are  required,  as 
compared  with  30  in  Cleveland  and  25^4  in  Cincinnati. 

The  builders'  course  is  the  only  four-year  course  of  that  charac- 
ter in  public  high  schools  of  the  country,  so  far  as  the  writer  knows. 
By  giving  introductory  shopwork  in  a  number  of  the  building  trades, 
with  related  academic  subjects  and  drawing,  the  course  prepares 
primarily  for  positions  as  foreman,  superintendent  or  general  con- 
tractor. From  50  to  57  per  cent  of  the  time  is  devoted  to  shopwork 
and  drawing.  As  outlined,  it  is  an  excellent  example  of  a  course  in 
which  the  academic  subjects  are  closely  related  to  the  constructive 
industries.  In  chemistry  and  physics,  the  outlines  do  not  indicate 
whether  the  subject-matter  is  to  be  presented  in  terms  of  its  appli- 
cation to  the  building  industries,  but  the  opportunity  for  such  appli- 
cation is  especially  good  in  these  subjects. 

The  architectural  course  prepares  for  work  in  architecture  and 
in  drafting-rooms,  and  gives  from  two-fifths  to  one-half  of  the 
school  time  to  shopwork,  drawing  and  architectural  design.  Shop- 
work  is  offered  in  the  first  year  only. 

In  the  business  course  the  subjects  offered  are  as  follows : 


8  See  pp.  193,195. 

9  The  only  specialization  now  offered  is  in  electrical  or  gas-engine  construction  in  the 
fourth  year.  This  subject  may  be  taken  as  a  year-subject,  6  periods  a  week,  or  as  a 
semester-subject,  as  formerly  offered,  4  periods  a  week. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  91 

6. —  Business  Course 

FIRST   YEAR 

First  Semester:                                                        Weeks     Periods  Credits 

Business  English  20  A 

Business   arithmetic    20            4  A 

Physiology  20           5  A 

Drawing    20            4  '3 

Business  forms  and  penmanship 20           2  .15 

Physical  education    20           2  -1 

21  1.75 
Second  Semester: 

Business  English  20  -4 

Business   arithmetic    20  -4 

Civic  and  industrial  Chicago 20           5  .4 

Drawing    20            4  3 

Business  forms  and  penmanship 20            2  .15 

Physical  education   20            2  -1 

21  1.75 

SECOND   YEAR 

First  Semester: 

Business  English  20            4  -4 

Commercial  geography   20            5  .4 

Business  methods  and  office  practice 20            4  .3 

Drawing   20            4  -3 

Physical  education    20            2  .1 

19  1.5 
Second  Semester: 

Business  English  20            4  A 

Commercial  geography    20            5  .4 

Drawing   20            4  *3 

Physical  education   20            2  .1 

15  1.2 

Bookkeeping  (one-half  year)  is  required  for  those  not  intend- 
ing to  take  bookkeeping  in  the  third  or  fourth  year  in  the  voca- 
tional courses. 


THIRD   YEAR 

First  Semester: 


English  20 

Industrial  history    20 

Physical  education    20 


4  .4 

2  .1 


10 


Periods 

Credits 

4 

.4 

4 

.4 

2 

.1 

92  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Second  Semester:  Weeks 

English    20 

Industrial   history    20 

Physical  education   20 

10  .9 

Choose  from  the  list  of  optional  studies  enough  to  complete 
four  credits  for  the  year's  work :  at  least  .8  credits  each  semester 
must  be  for  commercial  studies. 


FOURTH    YEAR 

First  Semester:  Weeks 

English     20 

Economics  and  commercial  law 20 

United  States  history  and  civics 20 

Physical  education   20 


Second  Semester: 

English    20 

Economics  and  commercial  law 20 

United  States  history  and  civics 20 

Physical  education    20 


riods 

Credi' 

4 

.4 

4 

.4 

4 

.4 

2 

.1 

14.  1.3 


4  .4 

4  .4 

4  .4 

2  .1 


14  1.3 


Choose  from  the  list  of  optional  studies  enough  to  complete 
four  credits  for  the  year's  work :  at  least  .8  credits  each  semester 
must  be  for  commercial  studies. 

The  time  given  to  mathematics  in  the  business  course  is  less  than 
half  as  much  as  is  given  to  this  subject  in  the  first  two  years  in  the 
Cleveland  High  School  of  Commerce.10  In  the  Cleveland  school 
attention  is  given  to  mental  arithmetic,  rapid  calculation  and  pen- 
manship incidentally  throughout  the  entire  course. 

In  the  third  and  fourth  years  of  the  business  course  at  least  .8 
credits  each  semester  must  be  for  commercial  subjects  listed  with 
the  general  group  of  optional  studies  for  all  courses.  A  clearer  idea 
of  the  content  of  the  business  course  would  be  obtained  by  parents 
and  pupils  if  the  technical  subjects,  as  accounting,  stenography,  etc., 
which  should  form  the  backbone  of  the  course,  were  given  a  more 
definite  place  in  the  outline  of  the  course. 

10  Course  of  Study,  1909. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  93 

3.  The  two-year  vocational  courses  are  open  to  graduates  of  the 
eighth  grade  only,  and  are  intended  mainly  for  students  who  can 
not  give  four  years  to  a  general  high-school  education,  but  who  can 
give  two  years  to  training  along  definite  vocational  lines.  It  is 
expected  by  the  school  authorities  that  these  courses  will  attract  to 
the  high  school  a  considerable  number  of  students  who  would  not 
otherwise  enter.  Full  credit  is  allowed  toward  graduation  from  a 
regular  four-year  course,  in  case  students  decide  to  continue  beyond 
the  two  years. 

The  following  ten  courses  are  offered:  12,  accounting;  13, 
stenography;  14,  mechanical  drawing;  15,  design;  16,  advanced 
carpentry;  17,  patternmaking ;  18,  machine-shop  work;  19,  elec- 
tricity ;  20,  household  arts ;  and  21,  printing.  The  first  two  may  be 
regarded  as  commercial  and  the  remaining  courses  as  industrial  in 
character. 

The  particular  subjects  offered  in  patternmaking  and  in  elec- 
tricity are  as  follows : 

17. —  Two-year  Course  in  Patternmaking 

FIRST   YEAR 

Weeks      Periods 

Business   English    40  4 

Shop  mathematics    40  4 

Shop: 

(a)  General  woodwork   (one  semester) 

(b)  Elementary  patternmaking  (one  semester) .  40  10 

Mechanical  drawing   40  4 

Physiology   (first  semester) 20  5 

Freehand  drawing   (second  semester) 20  4 

Physical   education  40  2 

29 
or 

SECOND   YEAR  28 

English  or  other  modern  language 40  4 

Geometry,  or  history  with  special  reference  to  indus- 
trial and  economic  conditions,  and  civics 40  4 

Shop  —  Foundry  and  advanced  patternmaking 40  12 

Mechanical   drawing    40  4 

Freehand    drawing    40  2 

Physical  education   40  2 

28 


94  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

19. — Two-year  Course  in  Electricity 

FIRST   YEAR 

Weeks      Periods 

Business   English    40  4 

Algebra    40  4 

Science : 

Physiology   (first  semester) 20  5 

Elementary  physics  (first  semester) 20  5 

Elementary  electricity  (second  semester) 20  8 

Mechanical   drawing    40  4 

Freehand  drawing  40  2 

Physical  education  40  2 

26 
or 
24 

SECOND  YEAR 

English  or  other  modern  language 40  4 

Geometry,  or  history  with  special  reference  to  indus- 
trial and  economic  conditions,  and  civics 40  4 

Applied  electricity   40  10 

Mechanical   drawing    40  4 

Freehand  drawing   40  2 

Physical   education  40  2 

26 

The  distinctive  features  of  the  two-year  industrial  courses  are : 

(1)  The  large  portion  of  time  (from  one-half  to  two-thirds)11 
allotted  to  shop  work  and  drawing ; 

(2)  The  specialization  in  a  particular  trade  required  from  the 
beginning ; 

(3)  The  "  industrialized  "  character  of  some  of  the  academic 
courses,  such  as  shop  mathematics,  business  English,  and  industrial 
history. 

Comment.  With  respect  to  the  first  and  third  features  mentioned 
above,  the  courses  compare  favorably  with  industrial  courses  in 
other  cities.  It  should  be  noted  that  industrial  geography  is  not 
offered  in  any  of  the  courses,  and  that  technical  instruction  in  applied 
science  is  provided  for  in  only  one  course12  —  in  electricity. 

11  Except  the  courses  in  design  and  in  household  arts  which  give  to  handwork,  includ- 
ing art,  something  less  than  half  of  the  school  time. 

12  Unless  the  biology  offered  in  the  household  arts  courses  is  to  be  organized  as  applied 
biology.  The  half  year  of  science  in  certain  other  courses  is  understood  to  be  physiography, 
according  to  the  statements  of  principals  and  teachers. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  95 

With  respect  to  the  second  feature  it  should  be  noted  that  the 
subjects  in  each  course  are  closely  related  to  a  particular  trade.  The 
courses  differ,  therefore,  from  the  usual  technical  high-school 
courses  which  give  an  all-around  shop  training  before  specialization 
is  permitted.  They  differ  also  from  the  trade  course  proper,  which 
in  common  practice  gives  very  little  instruction  in  related  academic 
subjects.  They  may,  therefore,  be  regarded  as  technical  courses 
restricted  to  a  particular  trade. 

Xo  other  public  high  school,  so  far  as  the  writer  knows,  offers 
technical  courses  so  restricted.13  The  present  practice  is  to  give  an 
all-around  technical  training  for  at  least  two  or  three  years  before 
specialization  is  permitted.  Certain  private  schools14  offer  technical 
courses  restricted  to  a  particular  trade,  but  the  students  are  com- 
monly sixteen  years  of  age  or  older  when  entering  upon  these 
courses,  and  the  schools  operate  under  conditions  which  enable  them 
to  secure  a  rather  select  body  of  students. 

In  the  Chicago  two-year  courses  the  student  is  asked  to  specialize 
—  to  choose  his  trade  —  when  he  enters  the  high  school,  and  this 
specialization  is  required  on  the  basis  of  no  previous  shop  training 
other  than  the  elementary  woodwork  of  the  grades,  which  is  not 
vocational  in  purpose.  There  is  in  general  no  objection  to  a  boy 
specializing  in  a  trade  whenever  he  is  mature  enough  to  do  the  work 
and  to  really  know  what  he  wants  to  do.  Whether  or  not  there  are 
many  such  students  in  the  first  year  of  high  school  remains  to  be 
seen.15  Surely,  for  those  who  have  not  reached  that  stage  of 
maturity  by  the  first  year  of  high  school,  the  two  years  of  all-around 
practical  training,  as  provided  in  Cincinnati,1'1  would  be  more  desir- 
able even  if  the  last  two  years  of  specialized  work  are  not  taken 
in  school. 

As  stated  before,  the  two.-year  courses  are  planned  for  students 

13  See  section  5,  p.  193  ff.  The  two-year  courses  in  St.  Louis  can  hardly  be  called 
technical  courses,  since  they  merely  permit  the  individual  pupil,  on  the  approval  of  the 
principal,  to  lengthen  his  school  day  by  doing  additional  work  of  the  usual  manual-training 
and  domestic  art  type. 

14  The  Williamson  School  of  Trades,  the  Carnegie  School  for  Apprentices  and  Jour- 
neymen, and  the  Wilmerding  School  of  Mechanical  Arts. 

15  Forty-seven  and  four-tenths  per  cent  of  the  boys  in  the  first  year  of  all  Chicago  high 
schools  were  fourteen  years  of  age  or  under,  30.8  per  cent  were  fifteen,  and  21.6  per  cent 
were  sixteen  or  over,  according  to  the  Superintendent's  Report,  1909.  The  percentage  in 
the  older  group  would  probably  be  about  16.4,  if  taken  in  the  preceding  September  when 
the  selection  of  courses  is  made.  Hence,  about  So  per  cent  of  the  boys  entering  high  school 
in  September  were  under  sixteen  years  of  age,  which  is  the  minimum  age  at  which  spe- 
cialization is  commonly  begun. 

18  See  p.  195. 


96  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

who  can  not  give  more  than  two  years  to  a  high-school  course.  The 
number  of  these  is  very  likely  not  so  great  as  is  sometimes  supposed. 
The  tacit  assumption  frequently  made  that  most  pupils  who  leave 
school  in  the  intermediate  grades  do  so  because  they  can  not  afford 
to  continue  is  not  supported  by  evidence.  Indeed,  the  evidence  that 
exists  [see  pages  36-39]  lends  color  to  the  assumption  that  they  leave 
because  the  school  does  not  provide  the  kind  of  training  needed.  It 
is  probable  that  many  of  those  who  now  drop  out  in  the  first  year 
or  two  of  the  high  school  would  remain  for  a  four-year  course  if 
they  understood  that  the  training  of  those  four  years  was  not  mainly 
a  preparation  for  more  training  in  college,  but  was  a  true  finishing 
course  preparing  definitely  for  a  life  career  after  high  school. 

It  is,  therefore,  pertinent  to  inquire  whether  what  is  wanted  on 
the  high-school  level  is  a  short  course  so  much  as  it  is  a  course  that 
is  very  practical.  The  present  four-year  course  in  manual  training 
provides  for  those  who  go  on  to  college  and  for  those  who  are  inter- 
ested in  manual  training  for  general  educational  purposes,  regard- 
less of  specific  training  for  industrial  pursuits.  For  those  students, 
however,  who  desire  to  enter  the  industries  at  once  after  four  years 
in  the  high  school,  the  present  manual  training  course  does  not  make 
adequate  provision.  Courses  like  those  in  Cincinnati  and  Cleve- 
land,17 with  specialization  in  the  last  two  years,  are  desirable.  It  is 
just  this  specialization  in  the  last  two  years,  on  the  basis  of  an  all- 
around  training  in  the  first  two  years,  which  makes  these  courses  the 
finishing  courses  needed  by  those  who  are  to  enter  the  industries  at 
once  upon  completion  of  the  high  school. 

The  question  is  whether  a  course  like  that  at  Cincinnati  or  Cleve- 
land would  not  hold  for  the  full  four  years  many  of  those  who  are 
now  supposed  to  be  unable  to  remain  longer  than  two  years.  For 
those  who  are  really  unable  to  remain  the  four  years,  provision  could 
be  made  by  relating  the  instruction  in  each  year  of  the  four-year 
course  so  closely  to  industrial  needs  that  each  year's  work  is  a  unit 
of  definite  practical  value  to  those  who  leave  at  the  end  of  that  year. 
Furthermore,  the  opportunity  to  specialize  at  various  points  in  the 
course  could  also  be  given  to  students  whose  maturity,  financial  con- 
dition, and  prerequisite  training  make  such  specialization  desirable. 

The  main  point  here  in  mind  is  that  the  two-year   industrial 

17  See  pp.  193,  195.  The  experience  of  Cleveland  indicates  that  such  courses  might  also 
in  time  be  generally  endorsed  by  colleges  as  providing  satisfactory  preparation  for  college 
technical  courses. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO 


97 


courses  provide  for  the  relatively  small  number  who,  upon  gradu- 
ation from  the  eighth  grade,  have  the  necessary  maturity  and  the 
prerequisite  training  to  profit  by  the  specialized  courses  offered,  and 
who  are  really  unable  for  financial  reasons  to  remain  longer  than 
two  years.  In  providing  a  more  practical  kind  of  instruction  than 
heretofore  offered,  the  two-year  courses  are  undoubtedly  a  step  in 
advance  and  as  such  are  to  be  commended.  That  they  may  fill  a 
present  need  must  be  admitted.  It  is  here  contended,  however,  that 
this  need  is  comparatively  small  and  that  the  greatest  need  in  the 
high  school  is  for  a  four-year  course  of  the  kind  referred  to,  still 
more  practical  as  a  finishing  course  than  the  present  four-year 
course.  An  appropriate  degree  of  flexibility  in  such  a  four-year 
course  would,  no  doubt,  adequately  meet  the  needs  of  all  students  for 
whom  the  present  two-year  courses  are  planned. 

It  is  the  plan  to  offer  some  or  all  of  the  ten  vocational  courses  in 
Chicago  in  each  of  the  nineteen  high  schools.  The  number  and 
per  cent  of  pupils  enrolled  in  the  first  nine18  courses  in  the  third 
week  of  September,  1910,  were  as  follows: 


Course  Number 

12.  Accounting   907 

13.  Stenography 1,197 

14.  Mechanical   drawing    188 

15.  Design    14 

16.  Advanced  carpentry    61 

17.  Patternmaking    14 

18.  Machine-shop  work  21 

19.  Electricity    261 

20.  Household  arts  58 

Total    2,721 


77.2 


18  Course  21,  printing,  was  not  offered  until  the  second  semester,  1910-11. 

The  number  and  per  cent  of  pupils  enrolled  in  the  ten  courses  in  December,  1911,   as 
furnished  by  the  Superintendent  of  Schools,  were  as  follows: 


No.  of  course 

No.  enrolled 

Per  cent  of   total   en- 
rolment   


12 
1,009 

13 
1,773 

14 
210 

15 
6 

16 
46 

17 
7 

18 
56 

19 
337 

20 
57 

21 
0 

28.8 

50.6 

5.9 

0.17 

1.3 

0.19 

1.5 

9.6 

1.6 

0.0 

7i 

.4 

2.99 

Total 
3,501 


The  table  reinforces  in   every  particular  the   statements  made  on  page   9S   concerning 
the  enrolment  in  September,  1910. 

8 


98  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

It  is  hardly  possible  to  draw  reliable  conclusions  from  the  num- 
ber of  pupils  registered  in  the  two-year  courses,  since  they  are  as 
yet  too  new  to  have  been  adequately  brought  to  the  attention  of 
parents  and  pupils.  The  numbers  in  the  above  table,  however,  do 
not  contradict  the  statement  that  practical  training  along  commer- 
cial lines  is  attractive  to  beginning  high-school  pupils.  Electricity 
and  mechanical  drawing  are  next  in  order  of  popularity.  These  two 
courses,  together  with  the  commercial  courses,  enroll  about  94  per 
cent  of  the  pupils. 

The  small  numbers  in  courses  16,  17  and  18  are  worthy  of  note. 
With  reference  to  these  courses,  it  may  be  suggested  that  in  order 
to  eventually  attract  large  numbers  of  high-school  pupils  it  must  be 
well  understood  by  parents  and  pupils  that  the  courses  prepare  for 
ultimate  positions  above  that  of  the  ordinary  mechanic.  For  high- 
school  students  have  the  academic  preparation,  and  it  is  safe  to 
assume  that  they  have,  for  the  most  part,  the  ambition  and  the 
family  "  push  "  to  take  advantage  of  distinctly  technical  instruction 
leading  ultimately  to  advanced  positions.  For  this  reason  the  tech- 
nical phases  of  the  academic  subjects  should  receive  greater  empha- 
sis than  the  present  outlines  show,  by  introducing  applied  science 
and  more  of  the  applied  mathematics,  especially  in  the  second  year. 
The  more  narrow  trade  training,  preparing  mainly  for  the  work  of 
the  actual  mechanic,  is  more  appropriate  on  the  lower  academic 
levels,  for  the  large  number  of  children,  fourteen  years  of  age,  who 
leave  school  in  grades  below  the  eighth,  to  go  to  work,  although  the 
industries  offer  little  or  no  opportunity  for  appropriate  training  at 
this  age.  Even  here  specialization  would  be  appropriately  preceded 
by  a  period  of  all-around  shopwork,  and  as  much  as  possible  of 
technical  instruction  in  applied  science,  mathematics,  etc.,  should, 
of  course,  be  given.  The  high  school  is,  however,  preeminently  the 
place  to  train  the  leaders,  at  least  the  non-commissioned  officers  in 
the  industrial  army,  whereas  the  rank  and  file  are  and  probably  will 
be  obtained  mainly  from  the  lower  academic  levels. 

The  character  of  the  instruction  now  given  in  the  two-year 
industrial  courses  varies  considerably  in  the  nine  high  schools  visited 
by  the  committee's  representative.  In  the  shop  work  in  carpentry, 
for  example,  two  of  the  schools  visited  are  giving  actual  carpenter 
work  while  the  remaining  schools  are  giving  the  conventional  manual 
training  work  in  wood.  In  the  course  in  electricity  some  schools  are 
introducing  the  actual  construction  work  done  in  the  trade,  while 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  99 

other  schools  are  confining  themselves  to  theory.  In  the  drawing 
and  mathematics  required  in  several  of  the  courses,  some  schools 
are  making  commendable  efforts  to  present  subject-matter  in  direct 
relation  to  shop  and  trade  work ;  other  schools  are  doing  very  little 
in  this  direction.  One  school,  operating  under  specially  favorable 
conditions,  has  prepared  excellent  detailed  outlines  of  a  tentative 
nature  for  some  of  the  shop  and  academic  subjects. 

That  the  character  of  the  instruction  should  vary  in  the  differ- 
ent high  schools  is  not  surprising  in  view  of  the  newness  of  the 
courses  and  the  different  conditions  prevailing  in  the  different  high 
schools.  Not  all  the  instructors  are  specially  prepared  to  give  the 
kind  of  instruction  needed.  A  very  few  were  found  who  seemed  to 
be  not  in  full  sympathy  with  the  vocational  courses.  One  principal 
seemed  to  think  that  the  vocational  courses  were  merely  "  on  paper." 
Apparently,  some  organization  and  unity  of  effort  are  needed 
whereby  the  good  work  done  in  some  schools  may  be  made  available 
to  other  schools. 

In  the  two-year  commercial  courses  considerable  improvement 
has  been  made  in  providing  more  time  than  formerly  for  practice  in 
stenography  and  accounting.  All  but  two  of  the  schools  visited 
now  have  enough  typewriting  machines  for  the  practice  work  in 
typewriting.  The  main  criticism  to  be  made  on  the  commercial 
work  is  that  many  of  the  teachers  are  not  properly  prepared  for  the 
work.  Too  frequently  teachers  with  no  special  knowledge  of  com- 
mercial subjects  are  taken  from  the  Latin  department,  for  example, 
to  teach  business  arithmetic,  or  from  the  science  department  to  teach 
bookkeeping.  Some  teachers  of  stenography  are  unable  to  take 
dictation  themselves.  According  to  the  statements  of  a  number  of 
principals  and  teachers,  very  few  of  the  teachers  of  commercial 
subjects  have  had  experience  in  business  offices.  No  organized 
effort  is  made  to  study  present  business  practices  and  office  needs 
or  to  secure  the  cooperation  and  advice  of  business  men  with  a 
view  to  organizing  a  commercial  course  suited  to  present  needs. 
Such  study  and  cooperation  is  strongly  urged  by  Chicago  business 
men,19  and  is  carried  on  in  the  commercial  high  schools  of  Cleve- 
land and  Boston.19  If  the  Chicago  courses  are  to  be  truly  commer- 
cial, if  they  are  really  to  be  what  they  pretend  to  be,  this  close  con- 
tact with  business  needs  must,  undoubtedly,  be  secured. 

18  See  Chapters  IX  and  XI. 


100  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

4.  In  August,  1911,  the  Chicago  Board  of  Education  voted  to 
establish  a  two-year  technical  college  course  in  the  three  technical 
schools  of  the  city.  The  courses  are  planned  to  provide  a  broad 
ground  preparing  for  the  work  of  the  third  and  fourth  years  of  the 
best  engineering  schools.  Following  is  the  tentative  course  of  study 
now  in  operation  at  the  Crane  and  Lane  high  schools. 


College  Engineering  Course 

FRESHMAN   YEAR 

First  Semester 
Required:  Periods 

College  algebra   5 

Chemistry    (qualitative   analysis) 10 

English  2 

Descriptive  geometry 5 

Gymnasium   1 

Elective: 

French  or  German 5 

Shopwork    10  or  5 

Chemistry  (additional)   5 

Machine  or  architectural  design 5 


Second  Semester 
Required:  Periods 

Analytical  geometry 5 

Chemistry    (quantitative  analysis) 10 

English    2 

Machine  or  architectural  design 5 

Gymnasium    1 

Elective: 

French  or  German 5 

Shopwork    10  or  5 

Chemistry   (additional)    5 

Machine  or  architectural  design  (additional) 5 

Work  will  be  arranged  so  that  pupil  concentrates  on  the 
kind  of  work  desired.  French  or  German  is  elective  if  the  stu- 
dent presents  2  units  for  entrance,  otherwise  it  is  required. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  101 

SOPHOMORE   YEAR 

First  Semester 
Required:  Periods 

Calculus   5 

Physics   8 

English  2 

Gymnasium   1 

Elective: 

Shopwork    5  or  10 

Statics    5 

Kinematics    5 

Steam  engineering  10 

Electrical  engineering  10 

Gas   engineering    10 

Chemical   engineering    10 

Civil   engineering    10 

French  or  German 5 


Second  Semester 
Required:  Periods 

Calculus    5 

Physics   8 

English   2 

Gymnasium   1 

Elective: 

Shopwork    5  or  10 

Statics    5 

Kinematics    5 

Steam  engineering   10 

Electrical  engineering  10 

Gas   engineering    10 

Chemical   engineering    .  .' 10 

Civil  engineering    10 

French  or  German 5 

Comment.  This  course  is  in  line  with  the  present  movement  to 
take  into  the  high  school  the  work  of  the  first  two  years  of  college 
courses,  thus  making  the  curricula  of  secondary  schools  in  this 
country  similar  to  those  of  France  and  Germany.  The  course  in 
Chicago  provides  for  some  specialization,  particularly  in  the  second 
year,  for  those  who  do  not  wish  to  go  on  to  engineering  schools. 


102  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

This  suggests  the  desirability  of  establishing  also  more  highly  spe- 
cialized technical  courses  in  the  fifth  and  sixth  years  for  students 
who  do  not  continue  their  work  in  engineering  schools.  Such  special- 
ized courses  could  give  a  high  grade  of  preparation  for  students  — 
girls  as  well  as  boys  —  to  enter  the  higher  ranks  of  industry  below 
the  rank  of  engineer,  or  to  become  teachers  of  shopwork  or  drawing 
in  the  technical  high  schools. 

5.  The  Flower  Technical  High  School,  for  girls,  was  opened 
for  the  first  time  in  September,  1911,  offering  a  four-year  course 
and  a  two-year  course,  embracing  work  tentatively  characterized  as 
follows : 

(A)     A  Four-year  Course,  embracing 

1.  General  household  science  (including  cooking,  laundry  work,  house 
sanitation  and  management,  and  household  accounts)  ;  intensified  training  to 
be  given  to  those  who  wish  to  become  institutional  workers,  managers  of 
kitchens  and  lunchrooms,  invalid  and  diet  workers,  and  emergency  workers. 

2.  Household  arts  (including  plain  sewing,  dressmaking,  millinery, 
embroidery,  lacemaking,  infants'  and  children's  clothing,  care  of  hospital  and 
hotel  linen,  and  interior  decorating)  ;  intensified  training  to  be  given  to  those 
who  wish  to  fit  themselves  for  supervising  and  for  special  work ;  machines 
run  by  electricity  and  foot  power  to  be  used. 

3.  Science  (including  chemistry  and  biology,  taught  with  a  view  to 
understanding  the  experiences  and  needs  of  daily  life,  as  well  as  with  the 
idea  of  gaining  an  insight  into  scientific  method  and  theory). 

4.  Art,  with  specialized  work  in  costume,  millinery  and  embroidery 
designing. 

5.  English,  both  utilitarian  and  cultural. 

6.  Applied  mathematics. 

7.  Geography,  history  and  civics,  with  special  reference  to  the  needs  of 
women  in  Chicago. 

8.  Physical  education  and  physiology,  with  the  idea  of  improving  health 
and  of  giving  recreation  and  training  in  social  requirements. 

9.  Music  as  a  recreative  and  cultural  study. 

(B)  A  Two-year  Course,  coinciding  in  part  with  the  four-year  course, 
but  shaped  to  fit  students  for  industrial  employment  by  the  end  of  the  second 
year. 

Courses  in  salesmanship,  typesetting,  boxmaking,  and  other  industries  to 
be  organized  as  needed. 

The  school  will  contain  a  fully  equipped  lunchroom. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  103 

The  school-week  is  25  hours,  about  two-fifths20  of  the  time  being 
given  to  handwork,  including  drawing.  The  present  tentative  plans 
provide  for  specialization  in  a  particular  trade  during  the  last  two 
years,  more  or  less,  of  the  four-year  course,  and  for  the  last  half 
of  the  two-year  course.  In  these  specialized  courses  somewhat  more 
than  two-fifths  of  the  school  time  will  probably  be  given  to  shop- 
work  and  drawing.  It  is  also  planned  to  add  a  fifth  and  a  sixth 
year  to  the  four-year  course  as  the  need  arises. 

For  the  present,  the  building  is  used  also  by  an  elementary  indus- 
trial class,  which  is  intended  primarily  for  over-age  girls  from 
grades  4  to  8,  inclusive,  who  are  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age  and 
at  least  two  years  behind  grade.  About  one-half  of  the  25-hour 
week  is  given  to  handwork,  including  drawing,  in  this  class,  the 
remaining  time  being  devoted  to  such  elementary  academic  studies 
as  are  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  pupils. 

About  65  pupils  were  enrolled  in  the  high-school  classes  in 
November,  1911,  and  about  35  in  the  elementary  industrial  class. 
In  the  high  school,  one  class  is  now  in  operation  in  the  first  year, 
and  one  in  the  second  year,  of  the  four-year  course,  and  one  class 
in  the  first  year  of  the  two-year  course.  In  addition,  a  few  students 
with  an  academic  status  above  that  of  the  second  year  of  the  high 
school  are  accommodated. 

Comment.  In  providing  for  specialized  work  in  particular  trades 
the  Flower  Technical  High  School  aims  to  be  a  true  finishing  school, 
giving  direct  preparation  for  girls  to  enter  the  industries  at  once 
after  graduation,  and  in  this  respect  compares  favorably  with  simi- 
lar schools  in  Boston,  Cleveland  and  Cincinnati.21  The  latter  schools, 
however,  give  more  time22  to  handwork,  including  drawing,  than  is 
at  present  given  to  these  subjects  in  the  Flower  Technical  High 
School.  The  Flower  School  gives  no  more  time  to  these  subjects  in 
the  first  two  years  than  is  provided  in  the  regular  high-school  course 
of  study  for  the  household-arts  course.  The  time  allotted  to  these 
subjects  should  be  increased  to  one-half  or  five-eighths  of  the 
school  time  in  the  first  year  or  two,  and  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
course  should  occupy  two-thirds  or  more  of  the  school  time. 

The  school  has  not  at  the  present  writing  provided  a  definite  and 

20  The  time  allotted  to  music,  physical  education  and  study  is  not  counted  in  comput- 
ing this  ratio. 

21  See  pp.  193-195. 

22  From  one-half  to  over  two-thirds  of  the  school  time,  as  compared  with  about  two- 
fifths  at  present  given  in  the  Flower  Technical  High  School. 


104  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

complete  curriculum  for  any  of  the  courses.  It  is  the  desire  of  the 
authorities  to  leave  some  freedom  for  the  development  of  a  curricu- 
lum as  the  needs  of  the  school  arise.  The  school  is  also  at  present 
too  new  for  one  to  pass  complete  judgment  on  its  work.  Some 
excellent  work  was  observed  by  the  writer  in  drawing  related  to  the 
sewing  work,  and  in  botany  related  to  the  cooking  and  to  the  textiles 
used  by  pupils.  It  is  apparently  planned  to  relate  all  the  academic 
subjects  closely  to  the  shopwork  and  to  industrial  needs.  In  sewing, 
considerable  order  work  is  done  for  individuals  and  for  institutions, 
and  articles  are  made  for  use  in  the  school. 

Elementary  schools 

1.  In  the  Farragut  Elementary  School,  industrial  classes  were 
started  February  1,  1910,  with  75  boys  and  25  girls,  from  grades 
6,  7  and  8,  who  were  one  year  or  more  behind  grade.  An  effort  had 
previously  been  made  to  organize  industrial  classes  in  this  school 
on  the  cooperative  plan,  with  pupils  alternating  between  factory  and 
school  in  two-week  periods.  This  effort  failed  partly  because  the 
boys  were  unwilling  to  make  the  necessary  financial  sacrifice  for  the 
period  in  school. 

The  classes  are  at  present,  then,  essentially  for  over-age  chil- 
dren. Instruction  is  provided  in  English,  history,  arithmetic,  busi- 
ness forms  and  correspondence,  drawing,  and  in  woodwork  for 
boys  and  sewing  and  cooking  for  girls.  Some  instruction  in  civics 
is  given  by  way  of  supplementary  reading.  About  one-third  of  the 
time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing  for  the  boys,  and  to  cooking, 
sewing  and  drawing  for  the  girls.  Plans  are  under  way  to  add 
elementary  electrical  work,  and  shopwork  in  forge  and  foundry. 
Classes  are  not  segregated  in  the  academic  studies  and  drawing. 

About  75  pupils  were  in  attendance  in  November,  1910.  From 
30  to  40  applicants  were  turned  away  in  September  for  lack  of  room. 
The  average  age  of  pupils  is  between  fourteen  and  fifteen  years. 
Sessions  are  held  5  days  a  week,  5  hours  a  day  for  one  group  and 
5^4  hours  for  another  group. 

Comment.  Special  effort  is  made  to  overcome  the  deficiencies 
of  the  children  in  the  regular  academic  subjects  and  excellent  prog- 
ress has  been  made  in  this  direction.  Especially  noticeable  are  the 
good  results  obtained  in  arithmetic  by  means  of  frequent  drills  for 
speed  and  accuracy  in  the  fundamental  processes,  in  which  the  pupils 
take  great  interest. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  105 

Teachers  endeavor  to  introduce  into  the  academic  subjects  as 
much  as  possible  of  the  applications  of  these  subjects.  In  arithmetic 
about  fifty  problems  relating  to  woodwork  have  been  collected.  In 
history,  an  elementary  study  is  made  of  the  cotton,  wool,  linen  and 
silk  industries,  using  for  this  purpose  a  number  of  the  current  sup- 
plementary reading-books  on  industrial  history.  In  English,  some 
composition  subjects  are  related  to  shopwork. 

In  drawing,  the  boys  give  about  half  of  the  time  to  working 
drawings  of  all  projects  made  in  the  shop,  and  the  remaining  time 
to  the  usual  mechanical  drawing  exercises.  The  girls  make  the  same 
working  drawings  that  the  boys  make,  and  go  through  the  same 
series  of  mechanical  drawing  exercises.  It  may  be  noted  here  that 
all  the  drawing  for  girls  in  the  Albany  Vocational  School  takes  the 
form  of  design  related  to  sewing  and  to  house  planning,  decorating, 
and  furnishing.  In  the  Farragut  School  a  very  little  work  in  design 
is  given  in  the  sewing  period. 

In  the  shopwork  for  boys  the  following  products  have  been  made  : 

Cutting  board,  book-rack,  footstool,  candlestick,  towel  holder,  hand- 
kerchief box,  bill  file,  toothbrush  holder,  envelope  holder,  key  rack,  whisk- 
broom  holder,  pot  shelf,  spool  holder,  nail  box,  clock  shelf,  table  mat,  mission 
bench,  thirty  looms  for  school  use. 

The  girls'  sewing  has  included  the  following : 

Dish  towel,  hand  towel,  sewing  apron,  cooking  apron,  flannel  and  muslin 
undergarments,  gingham  dress,  gymnasium  suit,  corset  cover,  white  apron, 
crocheting. 

The  shopwork  for  boys  and  the  cooking  and  sewing  for  girls  are 
practically  the  same  in  character  as  the  corresponding  courses  in 
the  regular  elementary  grades  and  in  the  first  year  of  high  school. 
The  additional  time  given  to  these  subjects  in  the  Farragut  School 
serves  the  purpose  of  providing  more  training  of  the  same  general 
kind  on  the  manual  side.  There  is,  however,  in  comparison  with 
similar  schools  in  other  cities,  little  of  a  distinctly  vocational  char- 
acter in  this  work.  Moreover,  in  other  cities  from  one-half  to  two- 
thirds  of  the  school  time  is  given  to  handwork,  including  drawing. 
as  compared  with  one-third  in  the  Farragut  School. 

The  writer  is  not  altogether  certain  that  it  is  the  aim  of  the 
school  authorities  to  provide  for  these  classes  instruction  which  is 
industrial  in  the  sense  used  in  this  report  —  namely,  that  it  shall 
prepare  definitely  for  vocations.    If  this  is  not  the  aim,  it  is  unfortu- 


106  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

nate,  for  these  over-age  children,  most  of  them  more  than  fourteen 
years  of  age,  and  living  in  the  midst  of  a  large  manufacturing  dis- 
trict, are  precisely  the  ones  in  whom  the  vocational  interest  is  strong 
and  the  school  interest  comparatively  weak.  If,  then,  these  children 
are  to  be  retained  long  in  school,  instruction  must  be  provided  which 
is  distinctly  and  frankly  vocational  in  purpose,  and  pupils  and  parents 
should  clearly  understand  that  such  is  the  purpose  of  the  school. 
The  importance  of  this  point  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  of  the  93  pupils 
attending  the  school  in  June,  1910,  48.3  per  cent  did  not  return  in 
September. 

Industrial  training,  therefore,  as  distinguished  from  manual 
training,  would  here  be  appropriate.  It  is  true  that  the  school  has 
been  in  operation  only  a  short  time,  and  that  its  full  development 
into  a  vocational  school  is  at  present  handicapped  somewhat  by  a 
lack  of  room.  This  lack  of  room  makes  it  impossible,  for  example, 
to  provide  in  the  school  a  dining-room,  bedroom,  etc.,  about  which 
the  girls'  work  in  homemaking  could  be  centered,  as  is  done  in  the 
Albany  Vocational  School  and  in  the  Washington-Allston  School, 
Boston.  In  planning,  furnishing,  decorating  and  caring  for  such 
home  rooms  large  opportunity  may  be  found  for  practical  work  in 
the  shop,  and  in  sewing,  design,  arithmetic,  English,  and  a  study  of 
materials.  Excellent  training  could  also  be  provided  if  a  school 
luncheon  were  given  each  day,  to  be  prepared  and  managed  by  the 
girls,  as  at  the  Albany  Vocational  School.  Even  with  the  present 
lack  of  room,  however,  it  should  be  possible  to  introduce  more  work 
in  sewing  of  a  practical  character,  such  as  the  darning  and  patching 
needed  in  the  home. 

In  the  shopwork  for  boys  much  more  practical  work  could  be 
done.  It  should  be  acknowledged  that  the  present  work,  for  its 
kind,  is  well  done  —  the  teaching  is  good.  It  should  also  be  acknowl- 
edged that  the  shopwork  for  boys  has  very  little  of  the  character 
of  mere  "  exercise  "  work,  for  the  problems  of  technic  are  nearly 
always  a  part  of  the  making  of  a  complete  article  for  ornament  or 
use  in  the  home  or  school.  The  projects  made  do  appeal  to  the  home 
interest  and  to  a  very  slight  extent  to  the  school  interest,  but  it  is 
questionable  whether  the  objects  for  home  use  are  made  to  fill  a  real 
need.  The  thirty  looms  made  for  school  used  do  fill  a  real  need, 
and  it  is  here  contended  that  much  more  of  this  kind  of  work  could 
and  should  be  done,  to  give  the  shopwork  more  of  the  quality  of 
real  work  to  the  pupil. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  107 

Opportunities  must  exist  in  this  school,  similar  to  those  found  in 
other  cities,  for  basing  the  shopwork  on  the  general  repair  work 
needed  in  and  around  school  buildings,  and  on  the  making  of 
apparatus  and  other  equipment  for  the  schools.  Much  suggestive 
work  of  this  character  is  presented  in  the  lists  of  projects  given  in 
the  description  of  schools  in  Chapter  VII.23  In  some  public  schools 
products  are  also  made  for  sale,  and  boys  are  sometimes  paid  for 
work  done  for  the  school  outside  of  school  hours.  Girls,  too,  do 
order  work  in  sewing,  and  sometimes  sell  the  products  of  the  kitchen 
to  private  families.  By  all  these  means  the  effort  is  made  to  give 
the  schoolwork  the  flavor  of  real  life  to  the  pupils. 

It  would  also  be  well  for  some  of  the  woodwork  in  the  Farragut 
School  to  take  the  form  of  carpentry.  If  more  room  were  available, 
the  elementary  phases  of  trades  using  materials  other  than  wood 
should  also  be  introduced,  in  order  to  reach  the  varied  interests  and 
develop  the  different  abilities  of  pupils.  In  addition  to  the  electrical 
and  forge  work  now  being  planned,  the  following  trades  are  sug- 
gested by  the  curricula  of  schools  in  other  cities  :24  printing,  tin- 
smithing,  sheet-metal  work,  plumbing,  bricklaying,  concrete  work, 
and  bench  and  vise  work  on  metal. 

That  the  more  practical,  industrial  work  referred  to  above  is  not 
beyond  the  powers  of  the  over-age  children  in  the  Farragut  School 
is  evident  from  the  fact  that  in  the  schools  where  this  work  is  done 
over-age  children  are  present  in  large  numbers  because  of  the  low 
requirements  for  admission.  It  may  be  added  that  this  more  prac- 
tical work  makes  it  possible  to  relate  the  academic  studies  and 
drawing  to  the  shopwork,  and  to  the  industries  in  general,  in  a  much 
more  direct  and  vital  way  than  can  be  done  with  the  kind  of  shop- 
work  now  offered. 

In  the  Farragut  School  the  opportunity  exists  to  attack  the  prob- 
lem of  industrial  education  in  Chicago  at  the  most  important  point  — 
in  grades  6  to  8,  when  the  largest  number  of  pupils  leave  school  to 
go  to  work,  and  at  the  age  when  the  industries  offer  little  or  no 
opportunity  for  appropriate  training.  These  years  are  at  present 
largely  wasted,  both  to  the  child  and  to  the  industries.  The  statistics 
presented  in  Chapters  II,  III  and  IV  show  the  great  need  for  indus- 
trial training  at  this  point.  It  must  be  emphasized,  however,  that  if 
this  training  is  to  really  attract  and  hold  the  pupils,  and  if  it  is  to 

23  For  the  methods  used  in  shopwork,  see  Chapter  VIII. 

24  See  especially  sections  1,  2,  3,   Chapter  VII. 


108 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


win  the  confidence  of  employers  and  parents,  it  must  be  truly  prac- 
tical in  character,  it  must  include  the  elementary  phases  of  actual 
tradework,  and  it  must  be  offered  under  conditions  which  approxi- 
mate as  closely  as  possible  the  best  conditions  prevailing  in  the  indus- 
tries themselves. 

2.  An  elementary  industrial  course  for  grades  6,  7  and  8,  is 
authorized  in  the  Course  of  Study  for  Elementary  Schools  adopted 
June  29,  1911.  Graduates  of  this  course  are  to  be  admitted  to  all 
high-school  courses.    As  shown  in  Table  23,  615  minutes  a  week  are 

Table  23.    Time  schedules  in  minutes  per  school  week25 


Industrial 
course 

General  course 

Grades 
6,  7  and  8 

Grade  6 

Grade  7 

Grade  8 

English,    history    and    civics,    mathe- 
matics, geography  (including  special 
Chicago  course),  penmanship,  nature 
study 

56020 

795 

735 

735 

Physical    education,    music,    opening 
exercises,    study,    general    use,    re- 
cesses   

325 

435 

495 

555 

Art,  industrial  arts 

61526 

270 

270 

210 

given  to  art  and  industrial  arts,  as  compared  with  270  or  210 
minutes,  in  the  general  course.  The  560  minutes  allotted  to  the 
academic  subjects  is  175  minutes  (nearly  3  hours)  a  week  less  in 
the  industrial  course  than  in  grades  7  and  8  of  the  general  course. 

The  work  in  industrial  arts,  as  outlined  for  the  industrial  course, 
includes  the  following  subjects  not  outlined  for  the  general  course: 
for  boys,  Venetian  ironwork,  plumbing,  concrete  construction,  ele- 
mentary electrical  construction,  photography ;  for  girls,  embroidery, 
millinery,  waitress  work. 

The  outlines  of  academic  subjects  for  the  industrial  course  are 
similar,  in  the  main,  to  those  for  the  general  course,  with  some 
omissions  from  the  outlines  for  the  general  course,  and  with  sug- 
gestions that  special  emphasis  be  placed  upon  the  industrial  and 

25  From  the  Course  of  Study  for  Elementary  Schools,  adopted  June  29,  1911. 

28  For  the  sake  of  comparison,  the  60  minutes  assumed  to  be  allotted  to  nature  study 
in  the  industrial  course  is  taken  from  the  industrial  arts  period  and  is  scheduled  with 
the  academic  subjects. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  109 

commercial  phases  of  the  various  subjects.  In  mathematics,  an 
excellent  detailed  outline  is  given  of  sources  for  problems  in  the 
work  in  household  arts. 

The  statement  is  made  in  the  Course  of  Study  that  the  industrial 
course  is,  for  the  present,  to  be  offered  only  on  the  special  permis- 
sion of  the  superintendent,  and  in  districts  where  the  demand  is 
sufficient  to  call  for  at  least  four  divisions  of  pupils.  At  the  present 
writing  no  school  is  actually  giving  the  course. 

Comment.  The  large  amount  of  time  (10J4  hours  a  week) 
allotted  to  shopwork  and  drawing  places  the  Chicago  elementary 
industrial  course,  so  far  as  the  time  element  alone  is  concerned, 
clearly  in  the  class  of  prevocational  courses  in  the  elementary  school. 
The  Chicago  industrial  course,  however,  should  not,  in  the  writer's 
opinion,  be  offered  to  pupils  of  normal  age  in  grade  6.  This  opinion 
is  based  upon  two  principles  which  may  be  said  to  be  fairly  definitely 
settled  in  current  practice  in  industrial  schools  or  courses  which 
assign  to  shopwork  and  drawing  as  much  as  10  hours  or  more  a 
week.  In  the  first  place,  such  courses  are  not  in  general  offered  to 
pupils  below  the  age  of  twelve.  In  the  second  place,  the  completion 
of  the  sixth  grade  (or  of  higher  grades)  is  commonly  accepted  as  a 
standard,  on  the  academic  side,  for  admission  to  such  courses.27 

These  two  principles  may  be  defended  on  several  grounds.  In 
the  first  place,  it  is  questionable  whether  the  interest  in  vocation  is 
definitely  aroused  in  most  cases  before  the  age  of  twelve,  and 
whether  the  child  is  sufficiently  mature  before  that  age  to  undertake 
with  profit  the  kind  of  shopwork  which  should  be  offered  in  a  dis- 
tinctly vocational  course.  Moreover,  one  of  the  objects  of  vocational 
courses  in  the  elementary  school  is  to  develop  an  appreciation  on 
the  part  of  the  pupil  of  the  value  of  further  school  training  after 
the  compulsory  attendance  period.  If  this  appreciation  can  not  be 
aroused  in  two  years,  beginning  at  twelve,  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  it 
could  be  aroused  by  beginning  one  year  earlier.  Again,  it  is  ques- 
tionable whether  the  academic  subject-matter  as  at  present  outlined 
and  presented  in  the  elementary  school  should  be  reduced  in  quantity 
to  the  extent  that  is  involved  in  the  time  schedule  for  the  Chicago 
elementary  industrial  course.     Present  practice  also  assumes  that 

27  See  Course  of  Study  for  Elementary  Schools,  State  of  New  York,  1910,  and  the 
admission  requirements  for  industrial  schools,  described  in  Chapter  VII  of  this  report. 
Courses  intended  primarily  for  over-age  children  in  the  lower  grades  are  not  included 
in  the  type  under  consideration.  In  such  courses  the  aim  is  mainly  to  advance  the  pupil 
on  the  academic  side,  rather  than  to  prepare  him  definitely  for  vocations. 


110  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

the  completion  of  the  sixth  grade  is  necessary  in  order  to  insure  for 
the  academic  subjects  a  degree  of  mastery  of  the  fundamentals 
which  is  needed  if  the  applications  of  these  subjects  are  to  be  pursued 
successfully  in  vocational  courses. 

In  view  of  the  principles  above  stated  it  is  therefore  the  opinion 
of  the  writer  that  the  Chicago  elementary  industrial  course  should 
in  general  not  be  offered  to  pupils  under  twelve  years  of  age,  and 
should  be  limited  to  those  who  have  completed  grade  6.  For  the 
normal  pupil  these  age  and  grade  limits  coincide.  The  over-age 
pupils  at  twelve  years  of  age  are  somewhere  below  the  sixth  grade. 
For  such  pupils  different  provisions  should  be  made.  They  should 
have  the  opportunity,  no  matter  what  grade  they  are  in,  at  the  age 
of  twelve,  of  entering  an  industrial  course  in  which  shopwork  plays 
a  large  part,  but  which  aims  primarily,  and  largely  by  individual 
work,  to  advance  the  pupils  on  the  academic  side  as  rapidly  as  pos- 
sible until  the  standard  of  the  sixth  grade  is  completed. 

In  short,  the  Chicago  elementary  industrial  course  by  beginning 
in  grade  6  begins  too  early  for  the  pupil  of  normal  age,  and  fails  to 
reach  the  retarded  pupils  below  grade  6  who  are  twelve  years  of 
age.28 

If,  then,  we  assume  that  the  elementary  industrial  course  should 
be  restricted  to  grades  7  and  8,  it  is  still  unnecessary  and  unwise  to 
give  so  little  time  to  the  academic  subjects  as  is  provided  in  the 
Chicago  time  schedule.  With  the  large  amount  of  time  (10*4  hours 
a  week)  allotted  to  handwork,  it  should  be  possible  to  lengthen  the 
school  week  from  25  hours  to  30  hours  without  bringing  undue 
fatigue  upon  the  pupils.  A  weekly  schedule  of  at  least  30  hours  is 
common  in  present  elementary  industrial  schools,  and  is  required 
in  the  vocational  courses  in  the  grammar  grades  of  Fitchburg,  Mas- 
sachusetts [see  pp.  162-182,  especially  p.  164].  In  the  Farragut 
School,  Chicago,  one  group  of  the  industrial  class  attends  school 
28^4  hours  a  week  [see  p.  104].  With  a  schedule  of  30  hours  a 
week,  and  with  10  hours  allotted  to  shop  and  drawing,  20  hours 
would  be  available  for  academic  subjects,  general  use,  etc.,  as  com- 
pared with  14%  hours  in  the  present  elementary  industrial  course, 
20^2  hours  in  grade  7  of  the  general  course,  and  21^  hours  in  grade 
8.    It  should  be  recognized  that  just  because  these  pupils  are  likely 

28  A  complete  system  of  industrial  courses  to  meet  the  needs  of  pupils  from  twelve  to 
sixteen  years  of  age,  below  the  academic  level  of  the  high  school,  is  presented  in  items 
1,  2  and  3  of  the  committee's  recommendations  on  pp.  15-21  of  this  report. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  111 

to  enter  the  industries  early,  it  is  all  the  more  important  to  give  them 
as  much  as  possible  of  the  academic  training  which  is  enlightening 
and  liberating  in  connection  with  their  vocation. 

In  the  outlines  of  academic  subjects  some  general  suggestions 
are  given  for  relating  the  subject-matter  to  industrial  conditions ; 
in  only  one  subject  (mathematics)  are  specific  suggestions  given. 
To  a  certain  extent  the  kind  of  academic  subject-matter  appropriate 
to  such  a  course  can  not  at  present  be  outlined  in  detail ;  it  must  be 
developed  by  the  teacher  himself  as  the  instruction  progresses  in 
close  contact  with  the  shopwork.  It  is,  therefore,  important  in  the 
present  experimental  stage  of  industrial  courses  to  have  instructors 
especially  fitted  for  this  work  and  to  provide  an  independent  organ- 
ization of  the  teaching  staff  with  considerable  freedom  from  con- 
ventional academic  standards.  The  outlines  of  the  course  of  study 
give  no  assurance  that  such  an  organization  is  intended,  although 
the  possibility  of  bringing  about  such  an  organization  is  provided 
for  in  the  statement  that  "  No  divisions  should  begin  the  work  with- 
out special  permission  from  the  superintendent." 

The  woodwork  for  boys,  as  outlined  in  the  industrial  course,  is 
about  the  same  in  character  as  that  outlined  for  the  general  course. 
This  work  should  be  made  much  more  practical  in  character,  should 
be  given  a  stronger  vocational  trend,  by  requiring  the  making  of 
apparatus,  equipment  and  other  articles  of  a  distinctly  commercial 
standard  which  are  actually  needed  and  put  to  use  in  the  schools 
or  elsewhere.  The  remaining  shopwork  for  boys  is  very  slightingly 
treated  in  the  outlines  by  merely  mentioning  the  names  of  the  trades 
to  be  introduced,  such  as  plumbing,  concrete  construction,  and  elec- 
trical work,  without  indicating  in  detail  the  character  of  the  work 
to  be  done  in  these  subjects.  Detailed  outlines  should  be  provided 
for  all  the  shopwork,  setting  up  a  definite  vocational  standard,  and 
avoiding  the  dilettante  work  which  might  be  done  in  the  absence  of 
such  outlines.  Detailed  illustrations  of  the  kind  of  shopwork  here 
in  mind  are  given  in  the  descriptions  of  schools  on  pages  162-182  of 
this  report. 

Continuation  schools 

1.  The  Apprentice  Schools  were  started  in  January.  1901,  and 
now  offer  day  instruction  to  carpenter  apprentices  from  January  to 
March,  inclusive. 


112  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

According  to  the  Articles  of  Agreement  between  the  Carpenters' 
and  Builders'  Association,  of  Chicago,  and  the  Carpenters'  Execu- 
tive Council,  of  Chicago,  Cook  County  and  Vicinity,  all  apprentices 
are  required  to  attend  some  school  each  year  during  January,  Febru- 
ary and  March,  and  while  attending  school  receive  from  the  masters 
the  regular  wage  provided  by  the  apprenticeship  indenture  —  namely, 
$6  a  week  the  first  year,  $7  the  second,  $8.50  the  third,  and  $11  the 
fourth  year.  The  apprentices  are  under  the  control  of  the  Joint 
Arbitration  Board  composed  of  members  of  the  two  associations. 
This  Board  exacts  fines  from  the  apprentices  for  non-attendance  at 
school.  Of  the  417  carpenter  apprentices  in  Chicago,  Cook  County 
and  vicinity,  in  November,  1910,29,  279  were  enrolled  in  the  two 
public  schools  that  year.30  The  average  membership  in  the  two 
schools  in  1910  was  222. 5.30  The  ages  of  students  range  from  six- 
teen to  twenty-five  years,  the  average  being  about  nineteen  years. 

In  past  years  the  bricklayers  and  stonemasons  made  similar 
requirements  of  their  apprentices,  but  these  requirements  are  not 
now  in  force. 

In  the  public  Apprentice  Schools  special  effort  has  been  made  in 
the  1911  school  term  to  provide  practical  instruction  suited  to  the 
needs  of  the  apprentices.  Teachers  have  been  sought  who  have 
special  qualifications  for  this  work.  Outlines  of  a  course  of  study 
were  submitted  to  the  school  authorities  by  the  Joint  Arbitration 
Board.  Shopwork  is  offered  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of 
the  Schools.  The  teachers  are  preparing  outlines  of  the  courses  in 
drawing  and  shopwork.  In  the  academic  courses,  teachers  are 
endeavoring  to  present  a  more  practical  kind  of  subject-matter  than 
that  which  was  formerly  offered.  Since  these  efforts  were  started 
only  a  short  time  before  the  schools  were  opened  they  are  not  yet 
sufficiently  matured  to  make  it  possible  to  present  in  full  detail  a 
statement  of  the  courses  to  be  offered.  The  following  statement  of 
the  present  tentative  plans  and  of  the  instruction  now  given31  may, 
however,  be  made. 

Four  hours  a  week  are  given  to  shopwork  and  from  ll/2  to  10 
hours  a  week  to  drawing.  Since  the  school  sessions  are  from  31  to 
34  hours  a  week,32  the  time  devoted  to  shop  and  drawing  is  about 

29  Statement  of  president  of  Builders'  Association. 

80  School  Report,  1910. 

81  Up  to  the  end  of  the  third  week  of  January,  1911. 

82  No  sessions  on  Saturday. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  113 

two-fifths  of  the  total.  The  academic  subjects  include  arithmetic, 
history  and  civics,  writing,  spelling,  English  composition  and  geog- 
raphy. 

An  effort  is  being  made  to  grade  the  work  according  to  the 
advancement  of  pupils  in  the  apprenticeship  term.  To  a  considerable 
extent,  however,  the  work  is  the  same  for  the  different  apprentice- 
ship years.  This  is  explained  in  part  by  the  fact  that  the  grading 
has  heretofore  been  comparatively  loose  and  the  present  teachers 
have  no  record  of  the  stage  of  advancement  reached  by  the  pupils, 
and  in  part  by  the  fact  that  some  of  the  subject-matter  now  offered 
is  comparatively  new  to  most  of  the  apprentices. 

In  arithmetic  an  excellent  text-book,  Shop  Problems  in  Mathe- 
matics,33 was  adopted  for  this  year,  and  is  used  in  all  classes. 

The  history  in  some  classes  takes  the  form  of  a  discussion  of 
current  events  based  on  the  reading  of  newspapers,  some  geography 
being  introduced  therewith.  In  other  classes  the  industrial  portions 
of  the  regular  elementary  school  text  (McMaster's)  are  used.  In 
one  class  that  portion  of  McMaster's  text  is  used  which  deals  with 
the  Constitution  and  Articles  of  Confederation.  In  still  another 
class  the  general  history  of  the  United  States  is  followed,  outlined 
by  presidential  administrations. 

The  civics  is  likewise  presented  in  some  classes  in  connection 
with  current  events  in  newspapers ;  in  other  classes  the  current 
elementary  texts  are  used.  It  is  worthy  of  note  in  this  connection 
that  instruction  on  trades  unions  and  builders'  unions  was  recom- 
mended in  the  course  of  study  prepared  by  the  Joint  Arbitration 
Board.  In  one  school  some  instruction  is  now  given  on  the  organiza- 
tion and  relations  of  these  unions. 

The  geography  is  largely  commercial  in  character,  the  material 
being  obtained  from  the  commercial  portions  of  the  regular  elemen- 
tary school  text  (Dodge),  and  from  Adams'  Commercial  Geography. 

In  English  some  excellent  work  is  done  in  writing  compositions 
on  specifications  and  contracts,  building  laws,  business  forms,  notes, 
etc. 

In  drawing,  a  notable  improvement  is  made  this  year  in  the 
elimination  of  many  of  the  formal  exercises'previously  given  and 
in  the  introduction  of  more  practical  work  in  estimating  quantities 
and  cost  of  material,  in  specifications,  strength  of  materials,  and 

33  See  p.  216  for  an  outline  of  this  book. 


114  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

building  laws.  All  the  drawing  instructors  have  had  practical  expe- 
rience in  architectural  drafting. 

In  the  shopwork  there  is  at  present  a  difference  of  opinion  as 
to  what  the  content  of  the  course  should  be.  The  tentative  outlines 
prepared  by  the  instructors  include,  for  both  schools,  the  care,  use 
and  sharpening  of  tools,  and  carpentry  work  in  house  framing,  roof- 
ing and  stair-building,  with  the  addition,  in  one  school,  of  interior 
woodwork  and  finishing,  and  in  the  other,  of  cabinet-making  and 
finishing  in  hardwood.  The  representative  of  the  Joint  Arbitration 
Board,  however,  has  criticized  this  work,  on  the  occasion  of  a  visit 
to  one  of  the  schools,  saying  that  instruction  in  actual  carpentry 
was  not  needed  in  the  school  shops,  because  this  instruction  was 
provided  "  on  the  job."  In  his  opinion  only  the  finer  work  with 
tools  should  be  given  in  the  school  shops,  but  he  failed  to  state  what 
that  work  should  be.  As  a  consequence  of  this  criticism  the  shop- 
work  in  this  school  seems  to  be  tending,  for  the  present  term,  in  the 
direction  of  the  conventional  manual-training  work.  The  work  begins 
with  the  usual  "  exercises  "  designed  solely  for  the  development 
of  fine  technic  —  the  planing  of  a  small  piece  of  board  "  perfectly 
true,  square  and  smooth,"  and  gauging  and  sawing  to  "  perfect " 
dimensions.  After  these  exercises  it  is  apparently  contemplated  to 
proceed  to  the  making  of  book-racks,  lamp-stands,  candlesticks, 
glove  boxes,  tabourets,  etc.,  and,  perhaps,  into  patternmaking. 

In  the  other  school  the  shopwork  starts  at  once  on  stair-building. 
The  first  and  second  year  apprentices  are  to  spend  part  of  the  term 
on  the  elementary  phases  of  this  work  and  will  later  take  up  house- 
framing  and  roofing.  The  third  and  fourth  year  apprentices  are  to 
spend  the  entire  term  on  the  building  and  finishing  of  stairs.  In  this 
school  instruction  and  practice  in  technic  and  in  the  use  and  sharp- 
ening of  tools  are  given  as  needed  in  the  progress  of  the  work. 

Comment.  The  Chicago  Apprentice  Schools  were  probably  the 
first  public  day  continuation  schools  for  trade  apprentices  to  be 
established  in  this  country.  The  only  other  school  of  that  character, 
so  far  as  the  writer  knows,  is  the  Cincinnati  Continuation  School 
for  machinist  apprentices,34  established  in  September,  1909.  Com- 
mercial schools  of  the  day  continuation  type  were  established  in  the 
Boston  public  schools  in  April,  1910.35 

In   Boston  and   Cincinnati  the  students   receive   full  pay   from 

34  See  p.  200. 

35  Seep.  201. 


IXDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  115 

employers  while  attending  school.  In  Chicago  the  apprentices 
receive  while  attending  school  the  regular  wage  called  for  by  the 
apprenticeship  indenture,  but  some  apprentices  receive  a  higher 
wage  when  working  at  the  trade.  In  Munich,  Germany,  the  appren- 
tices are  paid  in  some  cases  while  attending  continuation  schools.36 

The  Chicago  Apprentice  Schools  have  about  1,600  hours  at  their 
disposal  for  the  four-year  apprenticeship.  The  Cincinnati  school  has 
about  832  hours,  and  the  continuation  school  for  the  building  trades 
in  Munich,  Germany,  has  about  910  hours  for  the  three-year  course.37 
The  Chicago  schools  have,  therefore,  nearly  twice  as  much  time  at 
their  disposal  as  the  Cincinnati  school,  and  about  three-fourths  more 
than  the  Munich  school.  Moreover,  since  the  apprentices  in  the 
Chicago  schools  are  taken  from  the  tradework  for  the  entire  three 
months  of  the  school  term,  there  is,  apparently,  no  reason  on  the 
side  of  the  apprentices  why  they  should  not  be  required  to  spend  the 
same  number  of  hours  a  week  in  school  that  they  spend  at  the  trade 
when  not  in  school  —  namely,  44  hours.  This  plan  would  afford  a 
total  of  about  2,112  hours  for  the  four  years,  about  one-third  more 
than  at  present,  and  about  two  and  one-third  times  as  much  as  the 
three-year  course  in  the  corresponding  school  in  Munich. 

Chicago  thus  has  an  exceptionally  good  opportunity,  with  respect 
to  the  conditions  above  noted,  to  provide  instruction  of  the  day- 
continuation  type  in  the  Apprentice  Schools  already  established. 
There  has  been  much  discussion,  in  the  newspapers  and  elsewhere, 
over  the  importance  of  starting  day  continuation  schools  in  Chicago, 
apparently  overlooking  the  fact  that  an  excellent  start  had  already 
been  made  so  far  as  external  organization  is  concerned. 

But  a  comparison  of  the  instruction  offered  in  the  Chicago 
schools  previous  to  the  present  term,  with  that  offered  in  the  con- 
tinuation school  for  the  building  trades  in  Munich,  Germany,38  leads 
one  to  conclude  that  Chicago  has  not  risen  to  her  opportunity,  in 
this  respect,  as  adequately  as  she  might.  The  Cincinnati  and  Boston 
schools,  while  yet  in  their  infancy,  are  making  earnest  efforts  to 
provide  practical  instruction  closely  related  to  the  students'  needs. 

36  Statement  in  Organisation  und  Lehrplane  der  Obligatorischen  Fach  und  Fortbild- 
ungs-Schulcn  fiir  Knaben  in  Miinchen,  1910. 

37  See  p.  200  and  p.  H9  ff.  The  time  given  to  the  subject  of  religion  in  the  Munich 
schools  is  not  counted  in  this  statement. 

38  See  p.  119  ff.  Detailed  outlines  for  the  Trade  School  for  Carpenters.  Amsterdam, 
Holland,  and  the  School  for  Carpentry,  Brussels,  Belgium,  are  given  in  the  Second 
Annual  Report  of  the  Massachusetts  Commission  on  Industrial  Education,  January,  1908, 
pp.  335  ff.   and  376  ff. 


116  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

The  Apprentice  School  conducted  by  the  Chicago  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association39  has  also  developed  some  good  work. 

The  Chicago  Apprentice  Schools  have  been  in  operation  ten 
years,  but  apparently  no  thoroughly  organized  effort  has  been  made 
before  the  present  year  to  work  out  in  detail  a  curriculum  in  which 
the  needs  of  the  apprentices  is  made  the  center.  With  the  exception 
of  drawing,  the  instruction  has  been  much  the  same  in  character  as 
that  given  in  grades  six,  seven  and  eight  of  the  regular  elementary 
school. 

Even  the  drawing  has  lacked  the  practical  character  needed  in  a 
course  for  carpenter  apprentices.  In  the  academic  studies  compara- 
tively little  was  done  by  way  of  introducing  applications  to  the  build- 
ing trades.  What  was  offered  of  this  practical  character  was  what 
the  individual  teacher  happened  to  have  at  his  command  out  of  his 
previous  experience.  One  teacher  went  so  far  as  to  say  "  it  practi- 
cally amounts  to  nothing."  Another  teacher,  in  his  three  years  of 
service  in  the  Apprentice  Schools,  had  accumulated  a  considerable 
number  of  practical  problems  in  arithmetic,  and  in  the  third  year  of 
his  tenure  presented  some  valuable  instruction  on  plans,  specifica- 
tions and  estimating.  But  no  permanent  record  of  this  work  was 
made,  in  a  detailed  course  of  study,  and  when  he  left  the  service  the 
value  of  this  work  was  lost  for  the  future  of  the  school. 

In  short,  the  Apprentice  Schools  have  been  allowed  to  shift 
largely  for  themselves,  with  reference  to  the  adaptation  of  the 
instruction  to  the  special  needs  of  apprentices.  New  teachers  have 
had  to  find  out  from  the  pupils  themselves  what  subject-matter  was 
covered  in  preceding  years,  and  it  was  largely  a  matter  of  chance 
that  suitable  instruction  of  a  practical  character  was  occasionally 
offered. 

The  result  of  this  condition  is  what  one  would  naturally  expect 
—  a  lack  of  interest  on  the  part  of  apprentices,  testified  to  by  teachers 
and  others,  poor  attendance,40  and  some  difficulty  with  the  discipline. 
The  fact  that  about  fifty  building-trade  apprentices  attend  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  school,  and  that  some  carpenter  apprentices  attend  Lewis  Insti- 
tute, Armour  Institute,  and  the  Chicago  Technical  College,41,  in  all 
of  which  schools  tuition  is  required,  may  or  may  not  indicate  dis- 

30  See  p.  140. 

40  The  percentage  of  attendance  in  1910  was  88.1,  which  was  lower  than  that  for  any 
other  division  of  the  Chicago  public  schools  except  the  kindergartens,  according  to  the 
School  Report,  1910. 

41  Statement  of  the  president  of  the  Carpenters'  and  Builders'  Association. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  117 

satisfaction  with  the  public  schools  in  the  past,  but  the  fact  is  at 
least  worthy  of  consideration.42 

The  present  efforts  to  revise  the  course  of  study  in  the  direction 
of  more  practical  work  deserve  commendation.  There  are  now  some 
places  in  which  the  courses  overlap,  and  there  is  a  certain  lack  of 
correlation  among  some  departments.  These  deficiencies  are,  no 
doubt,  due  to  the  newness  of  the  course  of  study  and  should,  in  time, 
be  overcome. 

Because  of  the  practical  character  of  the  subject-matter  needed 
in  the  Apprentice  Schools,  and  because  of  the  shortness  of  the 
course,  it  is  especially  important  to  provide  a  curriculum  outlined 
in  considerable  detail  and  graded  throughout  to  correspond  to  the 
apprenticeship  years.  This  is  also  desirable  because  of  the  frequent 
changes  of  teachers  and  principals,  which  are  seemingly  unavoidable 
under  present  conditions. 

There  is  an  apparent  difficulty  in  the  v/ay  of  such  a  grading  of 
the  courses,  arising  from  the  fact  that  apprentices  come  to  the  school 
with  varying  degrees  of  academic  preparation.  But  this  difficulty 
would  largely  disappear  if  the  course  were  related  to  industrial  needs 
as  closely  as  it  should  be.  An  excellent  example  of  such  a  course  of 
study  is  the  one  for  the  continuation  school  for  building-trade 
workers,  Munich,  Germany,  a  translation  of  which  is  given  below 
[page  119  f f .] .  With  the  larger  amount  of  time  available  to  the 
Chicago  schools  they  should  be  able  to  cover  considerably  more 
ground  than  the  Munich  school. 

Since  the  course  of  study  for  the  Apprentice  Schools  is  now  in 
an  early  formative  stage,  some  suggestions,  based  on  a  study  of  the 
work  of  the  schools  and  of  industrial  schools  in  other  cities,  may 
not  be  out  of  order. 

(a)  The  courses  in  history  and  geography  now  offered,  in  so 
far  as  they  are  industrial,  are  so  in  a  general  way  very  largely.  Xo 
provision  is  made,  so  far  as  could  be  learned,  for  a  study  of  the 
history  and  geography  related  in  a  very  intimate  way  to  the  building 
industries.  To  a  considerable  extent  it  should  be  possible,  and  it  is 
desirable,  to  start  with  a  concrete  study  of  the  history-geography  of 
the  building  industries  and  then  branch  out  into  the  more  general 
industrial  and  into  political  and  social  phases.    It  would  be  desirable 

42  The  criticism  of  the  former  work  of  the  schools  is  based  on  visits  to  the  schools 
by  a  representative  of  the  committee,  and  on  interviews  with  three  former  principals  and 
with  five  teachers. 


118  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

also  to  include  a  history  of  unionism  and  the  mediaeval  guilds  in 
connection  with  the  instruction  on  trades  and  builders'  unions  pro- 
posed by  the  Joint  Arbitration  Board. 

(b)  A  much  closer  correlation  than  at  present  exists  should  be 
made  between  drawing  and  shopwork.  The  outlines  of  the  course 
of  study  for  the  Munich  continuation  school,  given  below,  are  sug- 
gestive in  this  direction.  The  writer  understands  that  this  matter  is 
now  being  considered  by  the  school  authorities. 

(c)  There  should  be  no  hesitation  in  providing  actual  carpenter 
work  in  the  school  shops.  The  apprentices  themselves  are  eager  to 
get  such  instruction.  A  number  have  stated  to  the  writer  that  it  is 
exceedingly  difficult  to  get  adequate  instruction  "  on  the  job,"  unless 
the  apprentice  is  associated  with  his  father,  who  takes  an  interest 
in  his  advancement.  It  is  well  known  that  this  difficulty  prevails 
generally  under  modern  industrial  conditions.  Last  year  a  petition 
was  presented  by  the  apprentices  to  the  Joint  Arbitration  Board  ask- 
ing for  instruction  in  shopwork,  including  the  use  of  the  steel  square. 
Again  this  year  a  petition  was  presented  by  apprentices  in  the  school 
not  now  offering  carpentry  asking  for  instruction  in  the  use  of  the 
steel  square.  The  writer  can  testify  to  the  greater  interest  displayed 
by  the  apprentices  in  the  school  which  starts  with  actual  carpenter 
work,  as  compared  with  the  school  which  starts  with  formal  exer- 
cises in  technic. 

(d)  More  than  4  hours  a  week  for  shopwork  could  be  used  to 
advantage.  A  44-hour  week  for  the  schools,  with  Saturday  morning 
sessions,  would  be  desirable. 

(e)  The  difficulty  experienced  in  securing  for  the  more  tech- 
nical phases  of  the  work  instructors  who  have  expert  first-hand 
knowledge  of  building  conditions  suggests  the  advisability  of  seeking 
the  cooperation  of  employers  and  workmen  in  securing  such  instruct- 
ors. Since  the  Apprentice  Schools  are  in  session  only  in  the  dull 
season  for  the  building  trades,  this  cooperation  should  be  readily 
obtained. 

(f)  Many  of  the  obstacles  now  in  the  way  of  the  full  develop- 
ment of  the  Apprentice  Schools  could  be  overcome  if  the  course 
were  extended  to  include  instruction  for  apprentices  in  other  trades 
in  the  autumn  and  spring.  The  machinist  trade  for  the  autumn 
quarter  and  the  plumbing  and  steam-fitting  trades  for  the  spring 
quarter  have  been  suggested.     Full  legal  authority  for  such  addi- 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  119 

tional   schools  exists   in  the   following  quotation   from  the   Illinois 
State  law,  approved  May  15,  1903. 

In  all  municipalities  where  a  manual-training  school  is  maintained  for 
the  technical  instruction  of  apprentices,  such  indentures  shall  further  provide 
that  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  master  to  cause  the  apprentice  to  attend  such 
school  for  at  least  three  consecutive  months  in  each  year  without  expense  to 
the  apprentice.43 

(g)  It  is  unfortunate  that  apprentices  in  the  bricklaying  and 
stonemason  trades  are  no  longer  required  to  attend  the  Apprentice 
Schools,  for  the  three  building  trades  form  a  natural  group  with 
closely  allied  interests.  A  combined  course  of  study  similar  to  the 
Munich  course  given  below  could  be  prepared  which  would  be  of 
greater  value  to  a  particular  trade  because  of  its  relations  to  the 
other  two.  If  a  thoroughly  practical  course  of  study  were  arranged 
for  the  three  trades  it  is  not  unlikely  that  the  bricklayers  and  stone- 
masons could  be  persuaded  to  resume  their  former  relations  to  the 
schools. 

(h)  The  per  capita  cost  of  the  Apprentice  Schools  in  1910,  for 
teachers'  salaries  only,  was  $12.72.44  Reduced  to  a  ten-months  basis 
this  gives  $42.40,  compared  with  $25. 8544  for  elementary  schools  and 
$70. 6544  for  technical  high  schools.  Since  the  apprentices  are  older 
than  the  high-school  students  it  would  not  be  inappropriate  to  pay 
at  least  as  much  for  technical  instruction  in  the  Apprentice  Schools, 
if  necessary,  as  is  paid  in  the  technical  high  schools. 

The  following  is  an  outline  of  the  organization  and  course  of 
study  for  the  continuation  school  for  building-trade  workers  in 
Munich,  Germany  :45 

Principles  of  Reorganization 

a.  The  trade  school  for  workers  in  the  building  trades  comprises, 
corresponding  to  the  term  of  apprenticeship  of  the  pupils,  three  pro- 
gressive yearly  classes,  instruction  in  which  is  given  during  the  period 
from  September  15  until  July  14  in  each  year. 

b.  Attendance  at  these  classes  is  compulsory  for  all  masons',  stone- 
cutters' and  carpenters'  apprentices  during  the  entire  period  of  their 
apprenticeship,  or  until  the  completion  of  the  eighteenth  year  of  their  age. 

c.  Instruction   is   confined   strictly   to    the   above-mentioned    trades, 

43  From  Hurd's  Statutes. 

44  School   Report,  1910. 

45  The  translation  is  taken  from  Bulletin  No.  14  of  the  National  Society  for  the  Pro- 
motion of  Industrial  Education,  New  York.  An  outline  of  the  Munich  continuation  school 
for  unskilled  workers  is  given  on  p.  204  ff. 


120  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

and  includes  the  following  subjects:  Religion.  Business  Composition  and 
Reading.  Trade  Arithmetic  and  Bookkeeping,  Hygiene  and  Civics..  Trade 
Drawing  and  Practical  Instruction  in  Materials  and  Tools. 

d.  The  hours  of  instruction  are  ten  per  week  in  all  three  trades 
during  the  winter  semester,  that  is,  from  October  15  to  March  IS;  and 
during  the  summer  semester,  that  is,  from  March  15  to  October  15,  six 
hours.  In  the  winter  these  hours  fall  on  a  single  workday  from  7  to  12 
o'clock  in  the  forenoon  and  from  2  to  7  o'clock  in  the  afternoon;  and 
in  the  summer,  on  the  afternoon  of  a  single  workday,  from  1  to  7  o'clock. 
Care  is  to  be  taken,  however,  that  apprentices  of  different  grades  coming 
from  the  same  concern  do  not  attend  school  on  the  same  day. 

e.  The  course  of  study  is  distributed  as  follows  over  the  three  school 
years  and  the  respective  ten  and  six  hours  of  instruction: 

Hours  per  week  in  the 
three  classes 
Subject  In  winter     In  summer 

semester        semester 

Religion  1  1 

Business  composition  and  reading 1  1 

Trade  arithmetic  and  bookkeeping 1  1 

Hygiene  and  civics 1  1 

Trade  drawing   3  2 

Practical  instruction  in  materials  and  tools....  3 

f.  The  instruction  in  drawing  and  the  practical  instruction  in  mate- 
rials and  tools  is  to  be  imparted  by  craftsmen;  the  remaining  instruction 
is  to  be  given  by  the  trained  teaching  staff  of  the  public  and  continuation 
schools  of  Munich.  It  is,  however,  provided  in  advance  that  all  the 
teachers  shall  be  in  very  close  touch  with  the  trades,  so  that,  with  a  view 
to  practical  application,  they  may  be  familiar  with  trade  requirements. 

g.  The  defrayal  of  the  expenses  of  instruction,  as  well  as  the  pro- 
vision of  the  necessary  classrooms,  remains  as  heretofore  the  duty  of 
the  community  of  Munich. 

h.  The  Guild  of  Master  Builders,  Masons,  Stonecutters  and  Car- 
penters announces  its  willingness  to  undertake  to  supplement  the  supply 
of  wood  and  plaster  models  for  the  drawing  instruction  or  of  observa- 
tion models  for  the  instruction  in  materials,  where  such  need  shall  at 
times  arise. 

Scope  and  Distribution  of  the  Subject-matter  of  Instruction 

The  subject-matter  of  instruction,  with  regard  to  the  vocation  of 
the  pupils,  shall  accord  with  the  following  schedule: 

a.  Religion.  Lessons  following  the  regulations  of  the  Archiepis- 
copal  Inspectorate,  or  the  Protestant  Superior  Council. 

b.  Business  Composition  and  Reading.  The  instruction  in  Composi- 
tion aims  at  preparing  the  pupil  to  draft  with  grammatical,  orthograph- 
ical and  formal  correctness  all  of  the  more  important  forms  of  private 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  121 

and  business  correspondence.  Class  I.  Ordinary  private  letters  to  mem- 
bers of  the  family,  relatives  and  friends,  relating  to  events  in  the  life 
and  vocation  of  the  pupil;  inquiries  and  replies,  applications  for  employ- 
ment, announcements,  statements  of  acceptance,  declinations,  indentures. 
(In  connection  with  this,  postal  forms.)  Compositions  on  the  subjects 
of  hygiene  and  materials.  Class  II.  Compositions  on  matters  of  pur- 
chase and  labor:  written  and  open  bids  on  building  materials,  inquiries 
as  to  prices,  orders  for  goods  and  labor,  purchase  and  labor  agreement-, 
business  instructions,  delivery  notices,  bills,  cash  payments,  receipts, 
part  payments,  refusal  of  payments  and  suspension  of  payments.  (In 
connection  with  this,  the  procedure  of  the  money  and  parcels  post  and 
of  the  freight  traffic.)  Complaints,  excuses,  opinions,  certificates,  recom- 
mendations. Compositions  on  the  subject  of  materials.  Class  III.  Com- 
positions on  the  subject  of  indebtedness;  shipments  of  goods  on  credit, 
certificates  of  indebtedness  and  security  bonds,  dunning  letters,  claim 
letters,  letters  of  respite,  abatements,  correspondence  on  bills  of 
exchange,  drawing-up  of  mortgages  and  notification  on  same.  Corre- 
spondence with  officials:  petitions  to  magistrates,  to  the  city  building 
commissioner,  state  building  officials,  commercial  and  industrial  com- 
missions, the  government  and  trade  tribunals.  The  instruction  in  reading 
is  intended  above  all  to  promote  the  general  and  moral  education  of  the 
pupil.  It  is  also  designed  to  arouse  the  pupil's  interest  in  the  best 
literary  works.  For  this  purpose  the  school  library  is  also  to  be  utilized, 
and  now  and  again  a  classic  poem  should  be  read.  In  order  to  further 
the  above  objects,  the  teacher  in  each  class  is  to  make  a  suitable,  syste- 
matic choice  of  appropriate  selections. 

c.  Arithmetic  and  Bookkeeping.  The  instruction  in  arithmetic  has 
for  its  object  primarily  to  impress  on  the  pupil  the  necessity  for  acquir- 
ing a  thorough  system  of  private  and  business  accounting  and  to  instruct 
him  in  the  proper  method  of  conducting  the  same.  But  in  addition  it 
shall  prepare  the  pupil  to  make,  with  as  much  self-dependence  as  pos- 
sible, the  more  simple  calculations  of  cost  and  estimates,  and  in  particu- 
lar it  shall  ensure  his  adequate  skill  in  special  building  calculations. 
The  work  in  arithmetic  for  the  three  classes  is  arranged  as  follows: 
Class  I.  Personal  accounts:  earnings  and  living  expenses  of  the  build- 
ing-trades workman;  reckoning  of  hourly,  daily  and  weekly  wages, 
wages  ledger  and  pay-roll,  monthly  and  yearly  income,  comparison  and 
equalization  of  summer  and  winter  earnings;  the  daily,  weekly,  monthly 
and  yearly  expenditures  of  an  individual,  of  a  family:  household  expense 
book,  monthly  and  yearly  balances.  Calculations  of  percentages:  sav- 
ings accounts  and  interest  (various  methods  of  calculating  interest, 
up  to  absolute  accuracy).  Geometrical  calculations  with  direct  refer- 
ence to  problems  in  building,  exercises  in  lines,  simple  surfaces  and  solids 
(square,  extraction  of  square  root,  rectangle,  cube,  four-sided  prism), 
calculation,  especially  of  extent  of  walls  on  metric  system,  old-style 
measurements  and  their  conversion  (foot,  square  foot,  land  measure. 
decimals).  Class  II.  Geometrical  calculations,  extension  of  the  work 
in   surfaces  and  solids   (rhombus  rhomboid,   trapezium,  triangle.   Fythag- 


122  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

orean  theorem,  triangular  prism,  circle,  circumference,  cylinder,  hollow 
cylinder,  pyramid,  and  cone  and  sphere,  with  special  application  to 
examples  from  masons',  stonecutters'  and  carpenters'  practice).  In  con- 
nection with  the  above,  practical  calculation  of  weights.  Class  III.  a. 
Business  accounts:  with  the  instruction  of  this  class  in  business  accounts 
is  connected  the  bookkeeping,  as  far  as  its  formal  completion  can  be 
effected  in  the  classroom.  Purchase  of  building  materials,  purchase 
and  sale  of  land  and  buildings,  with  accompanying  profit  and  loss, 
calculation  of  averages  and  more  complicated  problems  in  percentage. 
Work  by  the  day  and  jobwork,  including  partnership  calculations,  trans- 
portation of  building  materials  and  outfit,  sundry  other  trade  calculations. 
Cost-figuring  for  building  trades.  Calculations  and  estimates  of  a  simple 
character.  Liquidation  of  debt,  instalment  calculations,  computing  the 
value  of  financial  paper,  notes  and  checks,  calculations  of  tax  and  insur- 
ance. 

d.  Hygiene  and  Civics.  The  instruction  in  hygiene  and  civics  has 
the  purpose  of  familiarizing  the  pupil  with  a  rational  way  of  living,  phy- 
sical and  intellectual,  and  consequently  relates  on  the  one  hand  to  sani- 
tary matters,  with  special  consideration  of  workshop  hygiene;  on  the 
other  hand,  it  deals  with  the  duties  of  life  in  the  vocation,  the  com- 
munity and  the  state,  and  above  all  else,  with  those  affairs  from  which 
the  pupil  will  most  quickly  gain  a  recognition  of  the  necessary  inter- 
dependence cf  interest  of  all  social  and  industrial  groups.  Class  I.  a.  The 
apprentice:  admission  to  employment,  indentures.  The  workshops  and 
factories    from     the    hygienic     aspect,     the    observance     of    cleanliness. 

b.  Deportment:  behavior  at  home,  in  the  school,  toward  fellow  work- 
men and  employers  in  the  workshop,  on  the  street,  in  social  gatherings. 

c.  Hygiene:  construction  of  the  human  body  in  general,  nourishment, 
food  and  food  luxuries,  according  to  their  value  or  uselessness.  Res- 
piration and  the  circulation  of  the  blood.  Lodging  and  clothing.  Work 
and  recreation,  care  of  the  sense  organs  and  nervous  system.  First  aid 
to  the  injured,  practice  in  bandaging.  Class  II.  Trade  history:  develop- 
ment of  architectural  plans  and  processes,  especially  in  Germany;  in 
connection  therewith,  the  conditions  of  the  building-trades  craftsman; 
masters  who  have  been  prominent  in  the  building  trades.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  building-trades  guild  in  Munich  from  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury to  the  present  time;  trade  guilds  and  associations,  the  free  corpora- 
tion. Class  III.  The  most  important  features  of  trade  organization, 
Journeymen's  and  masters'  examinations.  Workmen's  protection  and 
social  legislation.  Trades  Council.  Trade  arbitration.  Trade  tribunals. 
The  building-trades  craftsman  as  a  member  of  the  community.  Com- 
munity organization.  Problems  of  the  community.  Honorary  offices 
of  the  citizens  of  the  community.  The  building-trades  artisan  as  a  citi- 
zen of  the  state.  The  state  constitution  of  Bavaria.  Objects  of  the 
state  organization.  Honorary  offices  of  citizens  of  the  state.  Govern- 
ment of  the  Bavarian  Kingdom.  Duties  of  the  state  authorities.  Con- 
stitution of  the  German  Empire.  Trade  and  commerce  in  modern  times 
and  its  importance  to  the  welfare  of  the  citizen.     Competition.     Allied 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  123 

trades.     The  importance  of  labor  in  the   state.     The  interconnection   of 
trade  interests.     The  value  of  the  German  foreign  consulate. 

e.  Drawing.  The  instruction  in  drawing  is  intended  to  impart  to 
the  student,  in  addition  to  the  greatest  possible  accuracy  and  dexterity 
in  the  use  of  drawing  tools,  the  capacity  for  presenting  clear  and  intelli- 
gible drawings  of  individual  masonry,  stonecutting  and  carpentry  opera- 
tions and  constructions,  as  well  as  for  drafting  simple  sketches  of  plans 
correctly  and  preparing  original  plans.  He  must,  therefore,  be  made 
acquainted  with  the  various  methods  of  drawing  and  coloring.  Where 
it  appears  practicable,  the  student's  comprehension  of  his  work  shall 
be  promoted  and  tested  by  the  execution  of  working  plans,  or  the  iso- 
metric reproductions  of  single  parts.  A  further  feature  of  this  instruc- 
tion is  to  be  found  in  the  arousal  and  increase  of  the  interest  of  the 
pupil  in  the  buildings  and  architectural  affairs  of  the  city,  as  well  as 
of  his  aesthetic  and  artistic  taste  in  general.  The  instruction  is  divided 
into  mechanical  and  freehand  drawing.  The  latter  is  in  every  respect 
to  be  so  planned  that,  wherever  possible,  it  shall  support  and  supplement 
the  former;  in  all  classes,  as  far  as  possible,  practice  is  to  be  given  on 
designs  or  models  that  are  actually  used  in  the  trade.  The  general  prin- 
ciples of  drawing  that  prevail  in  all  trade  schools  are  to  be  kept  in  view. 
The  subject-matter  of  instruction  is  as  follows: 

A.  Masons:  Class  I.  Geometrical  and  projective  drawing.  The 
most  important  geometrical  elements,  with  constant  reference  to  their 
technical  execution  and  their  application  to  practical  examples  of 
masonry;  linear  designs,  erection  of  perpendiculars  on  a  brick  wall, 
line  division  for  a  wall  design,  metrical  measurement  for  a  pedestal 
with  reduction  to  scale,  angle  division  for  a  crown  arch.  The  circle 
and  its  elements  in  a  round  window.  Finding  the  center  point  for  arch 
construction,  circular  division  and  polygons  in  a  chimney  plan.  Tan- 
gential theory  in  door  and  window  plans.  Diminished  arch  for  a  church 
window.  Ellipse  in  a  house  entry.  Building-stone  measurement.  Pat- 
terns for  facing  walls.  Class  II.  Technical  drawing  (from  models  only). 
The  elements  of  mouldings  and  their  combinations  to  form  mouldings. 
Simple  solids  used  in  building  done  in  horizontal,  vertical  and  side  pro- 
jection, and  horizontal  and  vertical  cross  sections  of  the  same; 
metrical  representation  of  single  building  stones  and  simple  elements 
of  building  construction.  The  different  styles  of  wall  bonds  (stretcher, 
binder,  English  and  lateral  bond),  wall  angles,  joining  and  crossing 
walls;  chimneys,  hollow  walls,  buttresses.  Construction  of  main  and 
partition  walls  for  several  adjoining  apartments.  Class  III.  Technical 
drawing  (from  models  only).  Irregular  forms  of  walls;  arch  construc- 
tion in  brick  (crown,  depressed,  round,  flat,  pointed  and  relief  archest, 
their  form-stones  and  mouldings.  Decorative  work  on  windows  and 
doorways.  Simple  dome  construction;  simple  lunettes.  Freehand 
drawing:  in  freehand  drawing  for  masons  and  stonecutters  the  object 
is,  in  all  three  classes,  to  impress  the  principle  that  only  such  deco- 
rative work  is  of  value  and  artistic  importance  as  answers  a  con- 
structive   purpose    or    which    is    designed    to    give    the    building    and    its 


124  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

surfaces  rhythm,  articulation  and  graceful  proportions.  For  this  rea- 
son no  model  is  to  be  drawn,  unless  its  connection  with  the  whole 
is  clear  to  the  pupil.  Besides,  there  can  be  selected  as  models  simple 
serial  ornaments  for  wall  bands  and  parts  of  mouldings;  various  fillings 
for  square,  rectangular,  circular  and  oval  wall  surfaces,  for  wall  friezes 
and  pilaster  strips,  for  window  casings,  etc.;  simpler  and  more  ornate 
foliage  and  flower  forms  for  templet  work  or  ornament;  spiral  scrolls 
and  their  decoration,  their  use  in  consoles,  keystones  and  gables.  Coats 
of  arms,  shields  and  cartouches  for  facade  ornamentation. 

B.  Stonecutters:  Class  I.  Geometric  and  projective  drawing.  The 
geometric  elements,  with  constant  regard  to  their  practical-technical 
execution  and  their  employment  in  stonecutting:  line  patterns,  laying- 
out  angles  from  a  stone  base.  Line  dividing  on  a  free-stone  wall,  scale 
and  transfer  of  scale  on  a  stone  pedestal,  angles  and  their  division  in 
bossage  or  a  window  lintel.  The  circle  and  its  parts,  finding  the  cen- 
ter of  a  segment  arch  or  a  circular  window.  Circular  division  and  poly- 
gons in  a  stone  filling.  Tangent  problems  in  a  torsional  twist  in  a 
window  scale.  Basket  handle  arch  for  a  church  window.  Ellipse  on  a 
bridge  arch.  Spiral  in  a  stairway.  Class  II.  Technical  drawing  (from 
models  only).  Moulding  details  and  their  combination  into  mouldings. 
Simple  forms  of  stones  in  ground,  front  and  side  plan.  Cut  forms  and 
isometric  representations  of  the  same.  Cut-stone  bonds,  building  them 
into  brickwork.  The  various  types  of  arch  construction  (crown, 
depressed,  round,  pointed  and  elliptic  arches,  smooth  and  serrated  arches, 
coupled  arches).  Pillars,  railings  and  balustrades.  Simple  projections. 
Class  III.  Technical  drawing  (from  models  only).  Patterns  of  garden 
pillars  and  columns.  Base,  belt  and  main  moulding  courses  and  build- 
ing them  into  brick  walls.  Round  and  pointed  arch  moulding.  More 
ornate  window  and  doorway  construction.  Niches.  Free  and  wall  curbs. 
Simple  open  steps.  Projection  of  complicated  stones.  Freehand  draw- 
ing: for  each  of  the  three  years  there  is  a  systematic  selection  of  suitable 
patterns  in  stone  sculpture,  adapted  to  the  proficiency  of  the  students 
in  drawing,  such  as  egg  and  leaf-stem  mouldings,  other  serial  ornaments, 
various  fillings  in  friezes  and  pilaster  strips,  in  stone  bases  and  pedi- 
ments, in  door  and  window  scrolls,  in  balustrades  and  other  railings. 
Stone  volutes  and  their  ornamentation.  Scroll,  leaf  and  flower  work 
for  wall  surfaces,  door  jambs,  capitals  and  key-stones.  Foliage  and 
fruit  scrollwork,  arms,  shields  and  cartouches  as  facade  decorations, 
for  pilaster  and  pillar  ornament,  decorative  columns,  simple  animal 
forms  and  allegorical  figures,  lettering. 

C.  Carpenters:  Class  I.  Geometrical  and  technical  drawing:  ele- 
ments of  geometrical  drawing,  with  constant  regard  to  their  technical 
execution  and  application  to  carpentry.  Line  patterns  and  laying-out 
of  rectangles.  Line  division  in  board  and  picket  fence.  Metric  measure- 
ment, reduced  scale,  and  transfer  of  measurements  on  a  wooden  column. 
Angles  and  their  division  in  a  garden  gate.  The  circle  and  its  parts  in  a 
roof  window.  Circle  division  and  polygon  in  a  well  enclosure.  Tan- 
gent exercises  on  a  sawed-out  gable.     Three-centered  arch  in  a  window 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  125 

frame.  Ellipse  for  a  gallery.  Moulding  elements  and  their  assembly. 
Class  II.  Technical  drawing:  simple  wood  solids  done  in  horizontal, 
vertical  and  side  projection,  cross-sections  of  the  same,  their  design  in 
isometrical  presentation.  Beam  joints  (running  joint,  tie  joint,  mortise 
joint,  dovetail  joint,  skew-notch  joint,  upper  strut,  hanging  tie,  strut 
frame  —  all  from  models).  Close-walls,  balconies.  Simple  doors  and 
gates.  Centering.  Class  III.  Technical  drawing:  roof  plans,  location 
of  beams,  simple  raising.  Roof-prop  parts.  Roof-prop  details  at  the 
eaves,  at  the  intermediate  purlins,  at  the  ridge  (by  use  of  models). 
Jack  rafters.  Simple  roof  supports:  standing,  lying  purlins,  collar-beam 
and  truss-frame  roofs,  dormer-window  plans.  Plans  for  simple  stair- 
ways. Freehand  drawing:  adapting  the  various  exercises  to  the  draw- 
ing ability  of  the  students  during  the  entire  three  years'  course,  a  suit- 
able and  systematic  selection  is  made  from  the  manifold  forms  of  beam 
and  board  ornamentation:  various  patterns  of  hanging  tenons,  upper- 
strut  and  beam-head  decorations,  tappets,  coronas,  barge,  verge  and 
hanging  boards.  Other  kinds  of  sawed  work.  Simple  carved  panels  of 
smaller  and  larger  dimensions.  Sketches  of  details  of  peasants'  houses 
obtained  on  walking  excursions. 

f.  Practical  instruction  in  materials  and  tools:  the  object  of  this 
instruction  is  to  familiarize  the  student  with  the  most  important  tools, 
instruments  and  machines  of  his  trade,  and  with  the  appearance,  prop- 
erties and  varieties,  the  relations  and  comparative  prices,  the  proper 
manipulation  and  the  practical  use  of  the  materials  used  in  the  trade. 
This  instruction  is  designed  especially  to  fit  the  student  for  making  cor- 
rect estimates,  and  for  this  reason  as  close  a  connection  as  possible  is 
to  be  made  with  the  instruction  in  arithmetic,  in  order  to  have  it  become 
a  real  aid  in  estimating.  The  lessons  include  the  following  subjects, 
given  separately  for  the  three  trade  branches  of  the  school,  and  related 
in  matter  as  closely  as  possible  to  the  given  field: 

A.  Masons:  Class  I.  Purpose  of  the  school  workshop:  general 
idea  of  building;  lessons  on  tools:  scaffold  building;  instruction  in 
brickwork  bonds  (English  and  lateral  bond,  partly  with  model  stones, 
partly  in  the  form  of  dry  masonry,  with  bricks  and  sand).  Lessons 
on  materials:  lime,  lime  slaking,  preparation  and  hardening  of  air  mortar. 
Bricks:  face  bricks,  moulded,  perforated  and  arch  bricks.  Dutch  bricks, 
paving  tiles,  flags,  roof  tiles,  earthenware  pipe,  chamotte  clay  and  stone. 
Class  II.  Instruction  in  bonding  acute  and  obtuse  wall  angles,  as  well 
as  bonded-in  walls  and  piers.  Suavian  and  Dutch  bond,  herring-bone 
bond.  Exercises  in  English  and  cross-bond  with  adhesive  material. 
Lessons  on  materials:  cement  (its  production,  properties  and  applica- 
tion, Roman  and  Portland  cements),  concrete,  concrete  moulding, 
plaster  and  its  use;  wall  decay  by  efflorescence  (its  cause  and  preven- 
tion) ;  wood  fungus  (its  cause  and  prevention) ;  sand,  gravel  (river  and 
pit  sand);  the  natural  building  stones:  limestone,  sandstone,  volcanic 
stones  (trass,  from  near  Nordlingen),  granite;  gompholite  (its  origin). 
Class  III.  Masonry  with  facing  stones,  masonry  of  chimneys  and  ar 
with  practical  exercises.     Arch  masonry  work.     Setting  of  window  and 


126  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

door  uprights.  Caulking  the  interstices  of  window  uprights  with  excel- 
sior or  similar  material.  Protecting  structural  parts  from  climatic  influ- 
ence. Setting  and  building  in  overload  supports.  The  finishing  coat. 
Its  preparation  with  lime  and  cement  mortar  (inside  and  outside  finish): 
mouldings  with  bends,  etc.  Explanation  in  regard  to  the  nature  and  con- 
struction of  foundations.  Anchoring  and  under-pinning  the  structural 
parts.  Preparation,  clearing  the  ground,  etc.,  for  quite  simple  rectangu- 
lar buildings.  Method  of  constructing  simple  firing  contrivances  (wash- 
fire  places,  country  baking  ovens).  Steps  for  the  protection  of  wood 
against  danger  of  fire.  Suggestions  regarding  drainage  arrangements 
of  buildings.  Rabitz,  Monier  and  plaster-board  walls.  Concrete  ceiling. 
Covering  of  iron  parts. 

B.  Stonecutters:  Class  I.  Explanation  of  the  tools  used  by  masons 
and  stonecutters.  Various  lifting  apparatuses  (from  the  iron  crowbar 
to  the  devices  for  power  operation).  Setting  up  scaffolding.  Setting 
into  the  brick  masonry  bond  (English  bond  with  three-quarter  and  split 
stones).  Practical  exercises  in  slaking  lime  and  building  (foundations, 
carrying  out  of  stairways,  setting  cut  stone).  Working  cut  stone  (prac- 
tical exercise  on  an  easily  cut  stone  and  one  more  difficult  to  cut,  lime- 
stone and  granite),  gurletted,  chiselled,  granulated,  axed,  smoothed  and 
polished.  Instruction  in  materials:  properties,  production  and  uses  of 
bricks;  properties,  production  and  uses  of  air  or  white  lime  mortar. 
Quarries  and  quarry  operation.  Masonry  of  unfinished  and  cut  stone. 
Concerning  the  setting  of  cut  stone,  limestone  and  varieties  of  gypsum. 
Class  II.  Stone-working  machines.  Pneumatic  chisel,  lathes,  rubbing 
machines,  etc.  Practical  exercise  in  making  setting-joints  (explanation 
of  stonecutting).  Exercise  in  stonecutting  on  plaster  models  or  soft 
stones.  Working  on  model  in  granite  (entry  steps,  steps  without  pro- 
file, end  step  with  nosing,  main-exit  steps  with  pedestals,  steps  with 
profile).  Models  in  limestone  (simple  stonecutting.  various  mouldings). 
Lessons  in  materials:  all  the  stones  occurring  in  nature,  with  regard  to 
their  applicability  to  building  (granite,  limestone,  sandstone  and  volcanic 
stone  and  clays,  e.  g..  pozzolana,  terranova,  etc.).  Class  III.  Practical 
exercises:  splitting  and  working  up  of  simple  and  complicated  stones 
(for  instance,  core  arches,  wagon  vault  and  groined  vaulting),  first  of 
all  in  gypsum.  Making  of  various  springers  and  keystones  in  limestone. 
Making  the  necessary  wood  forms  for  core  arches.  Making  core-arch 
springers  of  granite.  Lessons  on  materials:  plaster  mortar,  water, 
hydraulic  or  cement  mortar;  the  cements  (Roman  and  Portland  cement) 
in  greater  detail.     Concrete  and  artificial  stone. 

C.  Carpenters:  Class  I.  Tools  and  instruments.  Practical  exer- 
cises, first  of  all  in  the  use  of  tools.  Technology  of  wood:  wood  as 
building  material;  its  growth,  properties,  varieties,  defects  and  diseases 
(wood  fungus,  its  origin  and  prevention).  Felling  and  further  work- 
ing-up  of  wood  into  cut  goods.  Priming  and  impregnation  of  wood. 
Class  II.  Exhaustive  consideration  of  the  domestic  varieties  of  wood: 
fir,  pine,  spruce,  larch,  summer  and  winter  oak,  red  and  white  beech, 
maple,   ash    (woods   more    rarely  used:     alder,   lime,   elm,   birch,    poplar, 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  127 

willow,  pitch  pine).  The  utilization  of  these  woods  according  to  their 
properties.  The  most  important  fruit  trees  and  foreign  building  woods. 
Wood-working  machines.  In  the  practical  exercises,  making  of  the 
various  simple  wood  joints,  always  in  connection  with  the  drawing 
instruction.  Concrete  moulds.  Class  III.  Extension  of  the  practical 
instruction  to  include  the  more  difficult  joints,  beam  setting  and  roof 
joining,  according  to  the  ability  and  advancement  of  the  individual  stu- 
dents. Note. —  The  practical  instruction  for  the  third  and  fourth  classes 
is  related  to  the  drawing  lessons  in  the  respective  classes. 

2.  Evening  continuation  classes.  Beginning  with  the  winter  of 
1909,  certain  buildings  used  for  evening  instruction  have  been  given 
over  exclusively  to  industrial  classes  with  the  object  of  enabling 
principals  and  teachers  to  give  their  attention  exclusively  to  the 
problem  of  making  this  instruction  of  more  practical  value  than 
formerly  to  persons  at  work  during  the  day  who  have  left  school 
at  an  early  age.  Recently,  more  teachers  with  practical  experience 
in  commercial  shops  have  been  added,  temporary  teachers'  certifi- 
cates being  granted  for  this  purpose. 

This  tendency  to  make  the  evening  industrial  classes  more  prac- 
tical is  in  line  with  the  development  of  such  courses  in  other  cities, 
and  in  general  it  may  be  said  that  the  industrial  courses  offered  com- 
pare favorably  with  similar  courses  in  other  cities.  Of  the  three 
technical  high  schools  in  which  such  instruction  is  now  offered, 
excellent  work  is  being  done  in  at  least  one  which  was  observed  by 
the  writer.  The  principal  of  this  school  reports  that  2,265  students 
were  in  attendance  the  opening  night,46  the  machine  and  electrical 
shops  being  so  crowded  that  an  extra  session  had  to  be  provided  at 
5 :30  in  the  afternoon  to  accommodate  the  overflow.  The  large 
attendance  in  this  one  school  when  compared  with  the  combined 
enrolment,  the  first  week,  of  about  3,000  in  the  three  schools  a  year 
ago,47  shows  the  increasing. popularity  of  these  courses,  and  seems 
to  indicate  that  further  development  and  extension  of  the  evening 
industrial  courses  would  be  desirable. 

3.  Further  provisions  for  day  continuation  classes.  The  school 
administration  has  recognized4S  the  need  and  the  importance  of 
making  further  provisions  for  continuation  schools  and  classes,  espe- 
cially for  part-time  day  classes  for  the  younger  persons  already  at 

"Autumn,  1910. 

47  Statement  of  the  Assistant  Superintendent  of  Schools. 

48  School  Reports,  1909,  1910. 


128  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

work.  Only  the  more  capable  and  ambitious,  and  the  older49  persons 
are  attracted  to  the  evening  classes :  "  It  is  beyond  the  resources 
of  the  average  boy,  whether  in  body  or  character,  to  give  up  two 
hours  an  evening  for  half  the  year  in  a  desire  to  better  his  training, 
and  yet  the  city  ought  to  do  something  for  the  average  boy  and  girl. 
It  is  deplorable  to  see  a  boy  enter  upon  what  has  been  described  as 
a  '  blind  alley  '  occupation,  an  occupation  where  he  will  be  no  fur- 
ther ahead  at  eighteen  than  when  he  begins  work,  where  he  will 
receive  no  training  for  advanced  work,  and  where  he  may  look 
forward  to  an  entire  life  without  betterment.  The  Board  of  Edu- 
cation should  furnish  opportunity  for  all  pupils  to  better  their  con- 
dition, and  this  can  be  done  by  offering  the  right  kind  of  continua- 
tion schoolwork.'" 50 

But  the  cooperation  of  employers,  necessary  for  the  part-time 
day  classes,  has  not  been  forthcoming,  although  efforts51  have  been 
made  to  secure  such  cooperation.  The  Board  of  Education  has  even 
considered  the  plan  of  securing  State  legislation  requiring  employers 
to  cause  their  employees  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age 
to  attend  school  from  six  to  ten  hours  a  week.52 

While  it  may  be  admitted  that  the  complete  cooperation  of 
employers  will  not  be  secured  without  compulsory  legislation,  the 
experience  of  other  cities  indicates  that  a  good  start  might  be  made 
without  such  legislation.  The  following  suggestions  may  be  drawn 
from  the  experience  of  these  cities  with  the  cooperative  plan  in  the 
public-school  system. 

(a)  The  alternate  week  plan  of  cooperation  is  most  likely  to 
succeed  on  the  high-school  level,  and  in  connection  with  school 
instruction  distinctly  technical  in  character,  preparing  for  positions 
of  responsibility  above  that  of  the  actual  mechanic.  For  employers 
can  hardly  be  expected  to  give  full  pay  for  half-time,  and  the  finan- 
cial sacrifice  thus  demanded  of  students  limits  the  alternate  week 
plan  to  those  students  who  are  able  and  willing  to  make  the  sacrifice 
and  who  have  the  ambition  and  the  necessary  academic  preparation 

40  Of  the  20,G99  students  in  evening  classes,  1908-9,  64.3  per  cent  were  over  eighteen 
years  of  age,  41.8  per  cent  were  over  twenty-one  (School  Report,  1909). 

so  School  Report,  1909,  p.  89. 

61  Offers  to  assist  in  securing  the  cooperation  of  employers  and  unions  were  made  by 
the  Association  of  Commerce  and  by  the  Federation  of  Labor  (School  Report,  1909). 
Efforts  were  also  made  to  secure  the  cooperation  of  manufacturers  in  sending  boys  to 
the  Farragut  Elementary  Industrial  School  on  the  alternate  two-week  plan.  The  latter 
effort  failed  partly  because  the  boys  were  unwilling  to  sacrifice  half  of  their  wages  for 
this  purpose,  according  to  a  statement  of  the  Assistant  Superintendent  of  Schools. 

52  School  Report,  1909. 


IX  DUST  RIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  129 

to  profit  by  technical  instruction  leading  to  advanced  positions.   Such 
students  are  most  likely  to  be  found  on  the  high-school  level.53 

(b)  The  experience  of  Cincinnati  and  Boston  shows  that  large 
numbers  of  employers  are  willing  to  give  from  four  to  fifteen  hours 
a  week  to  their  employees,  on  full  pay,  for  day  continuation  instruc- 
tion very  definitely  related  to  the  daily  work.  In  Cincinnati  many  of 
the  employers  cooperating  are  convinced  that  the  increased  efficiency 
resulting  from  such  instruction  more  than  compensates  for  the  time 
taken  from  shopwork.54  Officers  of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad 
Company  also  testify  that  shop  production  is  actually  increased  as  a 
result  of  their  apprentice  schools,  although  four  hours  a  week  are 
taken  from  shopwork  for  the  academic  studies  and  drawing.55 

(c)  Most  of  the  successful  efforts  at  cooperation  have  been 
made  through  associations  of  employers  and  workmen,  and  have 
been  accompanied  by  the  appointment  of  advisory  committees  of 
employers  and  unions  to  secure  their  continued  interest  and  their 
criticism  and  advice  on  the  work  of  the  schools. 

(d)  Provision  should  be  made  for  some  kind  of  supervision  by 
the  school  of  the  work  of  the  students  while  in  the  factory.56  There 
are  two  reasons  why  this  should  be  done :  first,  to  enable  the  school 
to  relate  its  instruction  as  closely  as  possible  to  industrial  needs  and 
conditions ;  second,  to  afford  some  protection  to  the  student  against 
possible  exploitation  by  the  employer,  to  see  that  the  student 
advances  on  the  shop  side  of  his  training  as  rapidly  as  his  ability 
permits. 

It  should  be  added  that  one  obstacle  to  the  adoption  of  the 
cooperative  plan  is  the  lack  of  confidence  on  the  part  of  employers 
in  the  immediately  practical  value  of  the  school  instruction,  due  to 
the  hesitancy  on  the  part  of  the  schools  to  provide  the  practical 
instruction  needed.  This  difficulty  was  pointed  out  in  the  Superin- 
tendent's Report,  1910,  and  a  step  forward  was  suggested  by  way 
of  providing  more  skilled  shop  instruction  in  evening  classes.  It 
may  not  be  amiss  to  add  that  a  specially  favorable  opportunity  i< 

53  The  alternate-week  plan  is  in  operation  in  Fitchburg  and  Beverly,  Massachusetts. 
Freeport,  Illinois,  Lewis  Institute,  Chicago,  and  is  under  consideration  in  Cleveland  and 
Cincinnati,  Ohio,  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  and  Moline,  Illinois.  In  all  of  these  cases 
the  plan  is  confined  to  high-school  students,  except  in  the  Beverly  Industrial  School, 
which  admits  graduates  of  the  sixth  grade,  and  in  the  Lewis  Institute  Cooperative  Course, 
which  enrolls,  out  of  a  total  of  thirty-six  students,  only  five  who  had  not  completed  the 
eighth  grade. 

54  See  p.  201. 

56  See  American  Engineer  and  Railroad  Journal,  July,  1907. 
60  For  a  discussion  of  forms  of  supervision  now  in  operation,  see  pp.  150a  151, 
10 


130  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

presented  in  the  Apprentice  Schools  and  in  the  Farragut  Industrial 
School  to  win  the  confidence  of  employers  and  workmen,  alike,  by 
making  the  instruction  in  these  schools  practical  in  character. 

The  generally  favorable  attitude  of  employers  toward  industrial 
schools,  as  shown  in  Chapter  III,  and  the  definite  offers  of  coopera- 
tion made  in  the  comments  of  some  individual  employers,  indicate 
that  properly  directed  efforts  to  secure  voluntary  cooperation  might 
not  be  wholly  unsuccessful.  Furthermore,  the  cooperation  of 
employers  already  secured  in  two  of  Chicago's  schools  —  Lewis 
Institute  and  the  Apprentice  Schools  —  at  least  gives  faith  that  what 
has  been  done  might  be  done  again.57 

4.  State  legislation.  Some  interesting  legislation  bearing  on 
continuation  schools  is  shown  in  the  following  provisions  of  the 
Ohio  compulsory  education  law,  in  effect,  May,  1910.58 

Boards  of  Education  are  authorized  to  establish  part  time  day  schools 
for  those  who  are  at  work,  and  then  may  require  all  who  have  not  completed 
the  eighth  grade  to  continue  their  schooling  until  they  are  sixteen  years  of 
age.  Those  who  are  at  work  may  be  required  to  attend  eight  hours  a  week 
between  the  hours  of  eight  a.m.  and  five  p.m.  Those  who  are  not  employed 
are  required  to  attend  school  full  time  until  they  are  sixteen,  no  matter  what 
grade  they  have  reached. 

The  Board  of  Education  of  Cincinnati  has  adopted  a  resolution  to  provide 
"  Continuation  Schools  "  to  meet  the  provisions  of  the  law,  and  therefore  all 
certificates  to  work  hereafter  granted  will  be  with  the  condition  that  the 
Board  may  require  attendance  at  school  eight  hours  a  week. 

The  law  expressly  provides  that  certificates  to  work  are  to  be  given  only 
to  youths,  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age,  who  have  completed  the 
fifth  grade.  Pupils  must  present  to  the  Superintendent  of  Schools  a  written 
statement  from  an  employer  agreeing  to  give  the  child  legal  employment, 
and  to  return  to  the  Superintendent  of  Schools  the  "certificate"  within  two 
days  after  the  child's  employment  shall  cease,  with  the  reason  for  the  with- 
drawal or  dismissal. 

Any  child  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  who  ceases  to  work 
must  report  at  once  to  the  Superintendent  of  Schools;  and  said  child  must 
be  returned  to  school  if  employment  be  not  found  in  two  weeks. 

67  Since  the  above  was  written,  the  cooperative  or  alternate-week  plan  has  been  started 
at  the  Lane  Technical  High  School.  By  an  arrangement  with  the  Chicago  Telephone 
Company,  students  to  the  number  of  forty  or  fifty  are  formed  into  two  groups,  one  of 
which  works  for  the  company  while  the  other  group  is  in  school.  At  the  beginning  of 
each  week  the  groups  change  places,  those  at  work  returning  to  school,  and  those  in  school 
going  to  work.  Students  receive  $9  a  week  while  at  work  for  the  company.  They  receive 
no  pay  while  in  school.  The  students  are  selected  from  the  fourth-year  class  on  the  basis 
of  their  knowledge  of  electricity  because  of  the  technical  nature  of  the  work  they  are 
called  on  to  perform.  Those  who  fall  behind  in  their  studies  are  not  allowed  to  continue 
with  the  practical  work.  After  graduation  from  the  school  the  students  are  offered  per- 
manent positions  with  the  company.  Plans  for  extending  the  scheme  to  other  lines  of 
work  are  now  under  way. 

68  Taken   from  a  circular  issued  by   Cincinnati  public-school  authorities. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  131 

II.     A  Comparison  with  Other  Cities 

For  purposes  of  comparison  it  will  be  profitable  to  take  a  bird's- 
eye  view  of  present  provisions  for  public  industrial  education  in 
day  schools  in  Chicago  and  in  each  of  five  other  cities  visited  by  the 
committee's  representative.  The  outline  here  given  shows  in  con- 
densed form  what  is  being  done  by  each  city  as  a  whole.59 

In  Chicago 

1.  The  Farragut  Elementary  Industrial  School. 

2.  The  Apprentice  Schools. 

3.  Two-year  and  four-year  vocational  courses  in  high  schools. 

4.  Industrial  course  in  grades  6,  7  and  8  under  consideration. 

In  Boston,  Massachusetts 

1.  Optional  industrial  courses  are  provided  in  grades  6  to  8, 
inclusive,  requiring  five  hours  a  week,  but  not  jeopardizing  the 
pupils'  chances  of  being  graduated  in  the  usual  time  from  the  ele- 
mentary school.  Four  schools  offer  such  courses  in  woodwork  and 
bookbinding.  Similar  courses  in  printing  and  in  cobbling  or  ele- 
mentary leather  work  are  under  consideration.  One  school  has  140 
pupils  in  these  courses ;  another  school  has  75. 

2.  In  two  schools,  10  hours,  or  more,  a  week,  are  given  in 
grades  6  to  8  for  optional  courses  in  woodwork  and  elementary 
metal.  Students  in  these  classes  have  little  or  no  chance  of  being 
graduated  in  the  usual  time  from  the  elementary  school.  About 
40  students  are  enrolled  in  metal  work. 

3.  A  Boys'  Vocational  Class  of  20  pupils  from  the  upper  grades 
of  one  public  school  building.  This  class  is  conducted  by  the  North 
Bennett  Street  Industrial  School  (a  social  settlement  school)  in 
cooperation  with  the  public  school  authorities.60  A  little  less  than 
half-time  is  given  to  woodwork,  printing  and  drawing,  and  the 
remainder  to  related  academic  work.  A  two-year  course  in  general 
vocational  training  is  planned  for  this  school,  with  the  possible  addi- 
tion of  a  third  year  of  more  specialized  and  intensive  trade  training. 

4.  The  establishment  of  a  girls'  vocational  class  similar  to  the 
boys'  class  is  under  consideration. 

5.  A  pre-apprentice  school  giving  a  two-year  course  for  boys 
who  want  to  become  printers'  apprentices  at  sixteen  years  of  age. 

68  Fuller  descriptions  of  schools  and  courses  in  the  five  cities  here  included,  and  in 
other  cities,  are  given  in  Chapters  VI,  VII,  and  VIII. 

60  The  public-school  authorities  bear  no  part  of  the  expense  of  the  school. 


132  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

One-half  time  to  trade  instruction  and  one-half  to  related  academic 
work. 

6.  A  pre-apprentice  school  in  bookbinding  is  under  considera- 
tion. 

7.  A  "  home  school  "  for  pupils  in  grades  4  to  8  of  one  school. 
A  five-room  apartment  is  being  furnished  completely  by  pupils  in 
woodwork,  brass  and  sewing  classes,  and  is  used  for  work  in  domes- 
tic science  and  homemaking.  A  garden  is  connected  with  the  school. 
Pupils  in  grades  7  and  8  give  4  hours  a  week  to  this  work. 

Similar  work  in  another  elementary  school  is  under  consideration. 

8.  A  girls'  trade  school,  giving  one-year  practical  trade  courses 
in  dressmaking,  millinery,  clothing-machine  operating,  and  straw- 
machine  operating,  for  girls  between  fourteen  and  eighteen  years 
of  age.  About  two-thirds  of  the  time  is  given  to  trade  instruction 
and  one-third  to  supplementary  academic  work.  Two  hundred  stu- 
dents.    Subsidized  by  the  State. 

9.  An  independent  industrial  school  admitting  boys  of  fourteen 
years  to  four-year  trade  courses,  under  State  subsidy,  is  being 
planned. 

10.  Girls'  High  School  of  Practical  Arts.  A  four-year  high 
school,  distinctly  technical  in  character,  open  to  graduates  of  the 
elementary  school.  About  one-half  of  the  time  is  given  to  industrial 
work,  and  one-half  to  related  academic  work.  College  preparation 
is  abandoned.     Three  hundred  and  sixty  students. 

11.  The  Mechanic  Arts  High  School,  which  has  thus  far  been 
the  only  high  school  in  Boston  offering  a  four-year  course  in  manual 
training,  is  revising  its  course  of  study  to  the  end  that  it  shall  pre- 
pare its  pupils  for  industrial  efficiency,  and  not  for  entrance  to  col- 
lege or  higher  technical  institutions.61 

12.  Afternoon  industrial  classes  in  two  high  schools  offer  work 
in  jewelry  and  silversmithing  and  in  elementary  electrical  manufac- 
turing. Admission  is  limited  to  pupils  regularly  enrolled  in  the  high 
school.  About  four  hours  a  week  are  given  to  this  work.  Twenty- 
two  students  were  enrolled  in  the  class  in  jewelry  and  silversmithing, 
in  May,  1910. 

13.  Day  Continuation  Schools62  are  provided  which  meet  four 
or  five  hours  a  week  for  10  consecutive  weeks.    Courses  are  offered 

81  Resolution  passed  by  the  School  Committee,  September  7,  1909. 

82  Although  these  schools  are  commercial,  not  industrial,  in  character,  they  are  here 
included  because  of  the  importance  of  continuation  schools  in  a  complete  system  of  voca- 
tional education. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  133 

in  preparatory  salesmanship,  and  in  the  dry  goods  and  shoe  and 
leather  industries,  for  young  men  and  women  already  employed  in 
these  industries.  Students  attend  these  classes  during  working  time 
without  loss  of  pay.  Employers  cooperate  in  meeting  the  expense 
of  the  schools  and  in  furnishing  experts  in  the  industries  to  give  the 
instruction.  One  hundred  and  seventy-four  students.  Courses  for 
bank  clerks  and  for  persons  in  the  wool  industry  are  under  consid- 
eration. 

In  Newton,  Massachusetts 

A  good  schematic  presentation  of  the  facilities  afforded  by  the 
public  schools  of  Newton,  Massachusetts,  to  meet  the  needs  of  all 
classes  of  children  is  given  by  the  outline  taken  from  the  Superin- 
tendent's report  and  presented  herewith  [p.  134]. 

Special  attention  is  called  to  the  articulation  (shown  by  the 
arrows)  of  the  Independent  Industrial  School  with  the  grammar 
grades  and  with  the  Technical  High  School.  The  last  four  courses 
in  the  Technical  High  School  do  not  offer  preparation  for  college. 
All  high-school  courses  are  four  years  in  length. 

1.  In  the  Extra  Technical  Course  the  usual  four  years'  work 
in  manual  training  for  boys  is  completed  in  the  first  three  years, 
about  one-half  of  the  school  time  being  given  to  shop  and  drawing. 
In  the  fourth  year  specialized  tradework  is  offered.  Some  part-time 
work  in  commercial  shops  may  also  be  provided  for  in  the  fourth 
year. 

In  the  handwork  for  girls  a  similar  distribution  of  time  is  made. 

2.  The  Independent  Industrial  School  admits  boys  who  are  at 
least  fourteen  years  of  age  from  the  last  four  grades  of  the  elemen- 
tary school  (there  are  nine  grades  in  the  elementary  school).  About 
two-thirds  of  the  time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing.  Woodwork, 
machinework,  electricity,  printing  and  sheet-metal  work  are  offered. 
The  school  is  at  present  supported  by  a  private  citizen.63  Forty-five 
pupils  were  enrolled  in  May,  1910. 

In  Cleveland,  Ohio 

1.  An  Elementary  Industrial  School  is  provided  for  pupils  who 
are  at  least  two  years  behind  grade,  and  who  have  cither  finished 
the  sixth  grade  or  have  tried  and  have  failed  to  finish  that  grade. 

63  The  school  is  administered  by  the  public-school  authorities,  and  it  is  not  unlikely 
that  it  will  ultimately  be  supported  by  public  funds. 


134 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  135 

Half-time  is  given  to  shopwork  and  half  to  closely  related  and  prac- 
tical bookwork.  Boys  have  shopwork  in  wood  and  sheet  metal. 
Girls  have  cooking,  machine  and  hand  sewing,  and  garment-making. 
Classes  are  segregated  both  in  academic  studies  and  in  shopwork. 
The  course  is  two  years  in  length  with  a  year  or  two  for  specialized 
work  to  be  added  if  the  need  arises.  One  hundred  and  forty-five 
pupils. 

2.  A  similar  school  for  over-age  pupils  in  a  congested  district 
was  started  in  the  autumn,  1910,  in  a  new  building  with  full  equip- 
ment for  manual  training  and  household  arts,  and  with  a  gymnasium 
and  swimming  pool. 

3.  The  Technical  High  School  offers  a  four-year  course  to 
graduates  of  the  elementary  school.  Half-time  is  given  to  shop  and 
drawing  in  the  first  three  years,  and  two-thirds  in  the  fourth.  Prep- 
aration for  college  is  not  the  dominating  aim  of  the  school.  The 
academic  subjects  are  not  treated  in  the  usual  manner,  but  are 
organized  about  the  needs  of  the  school  shops  and  laboratories  and 
about  the  demands  of  industrial  life.  Classes  are  segregated  through- 
out, the  subject-matter  for  boys  being  different  from  that  for  girls. 
The  school  year  is  divided  into  four  quarters  of  twelve  weeks  each. 

4.  The  establishment  of  another  Technical  High  School,  similar 
to  the  present  one,  is  under  consideration,  to  meet  the  demand  cre- 
ated by  the  present  school. 

In  Cincinnati,  Ohio 

1.  Day  Continuation  School  for  machine-shop  apprentices. 
About  200  apprentices  from  18  different  machine  shops  give  4  hours 
a  week,  without  loss  of  pay,  to  instruction  provided  by  the  Board 
of  Education.  The  students  are  divided  into  nine  groups,  each  group 
meeting  one-half  day  a  week  for  48  weeks  in  the  year.  The  course 
is  4  years  long,  corresponding  to  the  regular  apprenticeship  term. 
and  is  closely  related  to  the  shop  needs  of  the  apprentices.  No  tool- 
work  is  given  in  school.  One  instructor  spends  two  half-days  a 
week  visiting  shops,  on  pay. 

2.  The  Industrial  Course  for  Boys  is  a  four-year  high-school 
course,  giving  five-eighths  of  the  time  the  first  two  years  to  drawing 
and  shopwork,  completing  in  that  time  the  usual  four-year  course  in 
manual  training.  In  the  third  and  fourth  years  the  students  spe- 
cialize in  some  trade  as  apprentices  in  commercial  shops,  under  pay, 
spending  alternate  weeks  in  school  and  shop. 


136  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

3.  The  Industrial  Course  for  Girls  is  similar  in  organization  to 
the  industrial  course  for  boys,  offering  in  the  first  two  years  the 
usual  four-year  course  in  domestic  science  and  art,  and  in  the  last 
two  years  the  cooperative  plan  of  one  week  in  commercial  shops  or 
stores  and  the  next  week  in  school. 

In  the  above  industrial  courses  for  high-school  boys  and  girls  the 
academic  work  is  closely  related  to  shop  and  industrial  needs.  The 
courses  do  not  prepare  for  college.  They  are  offered  for  the  first 
time  in  1910-11. 

hi  New  York,  New  York 

1.  The  Vocational  School  for  Boys  offers  a  two-year  prepara- 
tory trade  course  in  machine  shop,  sheet  metal,  forging,  plumbing, 
electric  wiring,  printing,  carpentry,  cabinetmaking,  turning  and 
patternmaking.  One-fourth  of  the  school-time  is  given  to  academic 
work  closely  related  to  the  shopwork. 

The  school  is  open  to  graduates  of  the  elementary  school,  and  to 
those  who  are  not  graduates  of  the  elementary  school,  provided  the 
latter  are  fourteen  years  old  and  pass  an  examination  on  certain 
elementary  subjects. 

Sessions  are  from  9  :00  a.m.  to  5  :00  p.m.,  5  days  a  week,  11 
months  in  the  year.    Three  hundred  students. 

2.  The  establishment  of  another  vocational  school  for  boys,  in 
a  different  part  of  the  city,  is  under  consideration. 

3.  A  four-year  industrial  course  for  boys  is  offered  in  one  high 
school,  giving  nearly  one-half  of  the  time  to  shopwork  and  drawing 
in  the  first  three  years,  and  in  the  last  year  seven-tenths  of  the  time 
to  advanced  shopwork  in  a  special  line.  Open  to  graduates  of  the 
elementary  school. 

4.  A  three-year  technical  course  for  girls  is  offered  in  one  girls' 
high  school,  giving  about  two-thirds  of  the  time  in  the  last  three 
years  to  courses  for  dressmakers  and  embroiderers,  milliners, 
designers,  printers,  bookbinders  and  library  assistants. 

5.  The  Manhattan  Trade  School  for  Girls,  formerly  under 
private  auspices,  is  now  a  part  of  the  public  school  system.  It  offers 
trade  courses  in  power-machine  operating,  dressmaking,  millinery, 
novelty  work  and  designing.  About  one-fifth  of  the  school  time  is 
given  to  academic  work  closely  related  to  tradework. 

6.  A  plan  is  under  consideration  to  open  the  elementary  school 
woodshops  afternoons  from  three  to  five  o'clock,  and  evenings  and 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  137 

Saturdays,  to  boys  over  twelve  years  of  age,  and  to  others,   for 
optional  work. 

7.  Another  plan  is  under  consideration  to  establish  optional 
industrial  courses  in  one  or  two  elementary  schools  where  there  are 
60  or  more  classes  in  grades  7  and  8. 

8.  The  Board  of  Education  is  attempting  to  secure  from  the 
State  authorities  permission  to  sell  the  products  of  industrial  schools 
in  the  open  market  at  prevailing  prices. 

Summary 

The  five  cities  compared  with  Chicago  in  the  above  outline  were 
selected  because  they  have  made  more  complete  provisions  for  indus- 
trial education  than  any  of  the  other  cities  visited  by  the  committee's 
representative.  Boston  leads  all  of  the  cities  in  this  respect,  with 
New  York  second. 

All  types  of  industrial  courses  thus  far  developed  in  public  day 
schools  in  this  country  are  represented  in  the  six  cities  mentioned. 
The  Apprentice  Schools  of  Chicago  are  the  only  examples  in  this 
country  of  what  may  be  called  the  "  seasonal  type  "  of  day  continua- 
tion schools.  With  respect  to  the  organization  of  this  type  of  con- 
tinuation schools  Chicago  may  be  said  to  be  in  advance  of  other 
cities,  since  this  type  of  school  apparently  fills  a  real  need. 

In  the  high  school,  Chicago  has  not  provided  —  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  builders'  course  —  as  thoroughgoing  industrial  courses  as 
Cleveland,  Cincinnati  and  Boston.  Chicago  has  no  trade  or  prepara- 
tory trade  schools  and  has  very  inadequate  provisions  for  optional 
industrial  courses  in  the  upper  elementary  grades.  Day  continuation 
schools  like  those  in  Cincinnati  are  also  lacking  in  Chicago. 

In  some  of  the  cities  a  definite  effort  is  made  to  articulate  the 
industrial  schools  with  higher  schools.  In  Boston,  for  example,  the 
industrial  courses  in  grammar  grades  prepare  students  for  any 
course  in  high  school.  In  Newton,  graduates  of  the  preparatory 
trade  school  may  enter  any  course  in  the  technical  high  school. 

III.     Private  Industrial  Schools64 

1.  The  Lewis  Institute  Cooperative  Course  for  shop  apprentices 
is  a  two-year  course,  distinctly  technical  in  character,  and  intended 
to  train  apprentices  in  the  machine  trades  for  positions  above  that 

M  Schools  and  courses  of  college  grade  are  not  included. 


138  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

of  the  actual  mechanic.  For  admission,  boys  must  be  between  sixteen 
and  twenty-one  years  of  age.  No  definite  academic  requirements 
are  set  for  admission,  but  only  5  of  the  36  boys  in  the  course  in 
November,  1910,  had  not  completed  the  eighth  grade,  and  nearly 
half  had  from  one  to  four  years  of  high-school  training.  The  aver- 
age age  is  about  seventeen  and  one-half  years. 

Wages  are  paid  weekly,  for  the  time  in  school  and  the  time  in 
the  factory  shops,  at  the  rate  of  7  cents  an  hour  the  first  year  and 
9  cents  an  hour  the  second  year,  all  time  lost  from  school  or  factory 
being  deducted  at  the  regular  rate.  The  tuition  fee  of  $50  a  year 
is  paid  by  a  private  benefactor. 

The  course  was  started  in  January,  1909,  in  cooperation  with 
the  Chicago  branch  of  the  National  Metal  Trades  Association. 
About  21  firms  were  cooperating  with  the  Institute  in  November, 
1910.  The  apprentices  are  grouped  in  two's,  each  boy  in  a  group 
alternating  with  his  mate  between  school  and  shop  in  successive 
weeks.  The  two-year  course  counts  as  half  of  the  four-year  appren- 
tice term. 

The  subjects  studied  in  school  are : 


FIRST   YEAR 

Winter  and  Spring:  Ho"rs 

'        "  per  day 

Principles  of  mechanics 2 

Shop  mathematics    1 

English  composition,  iiterature  and  public  speaking 1 

Machine  sketching  2 

Foundry  practice    2 

Summer: 

Chemistry,  demonstration  lectures,  laboratory  work  and  reci- 
tations    6 

Autumn: 

Principles  of  mechanics 2 

Shop   mathematics    1 

English  composition,  literature  and  public  speaking 1 

Mechanical    drawing    2 

Patternmaking    2 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  139 

SECOND   YEAR 

„,.  „      .  ,     .    .  Hours 

Winter,  Spring  ana  Autumn:  per  day 

Engineering  principles    2 

Applied  mathematics  1 

English  composition  and  industrial  history 1 

Machine  drawing  and  design 2 

Machine-shop  practice  and  forgework 2 

Summer: 
Electricity,  engineering  principles  and  practical  mathematics..     4 
Laboratory  work  in  testing  machinery  and  strength  of  mate- 
rials        2 

The  school  sessions  are  24  weeks  a  year,  5  clays  a  week,  8  hours 
a  day  in  the  autumn,  winter  and  spring  terms,  and  6  hours  a  day  in 
the  summer  term.  Half  of  the  school  time  is  devoted  to  drawing 
and  work  in  the  school  shops,  except  in  the  summer  term  which  is 
given  over  entirely  to  applied  science  and  mathematics. 

Comment.  That  the  course  is  technical  in  character,  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  more  narrow  trade  instruction,  is  evident  from 
a  glance  at  the  subjects  outlined  above.  The  instruction  in  mathe- 
matics65 is  based  largely  on  the  work  of  students  in  the  school  shops 
and  laboratories,  and  includes  arithmetic,  mensuration,  and  simple 
algebra  and  trigonometry.  Some  commercial  arithmetic  is  intro- 
duced in  connection  with  instruction  in  business  forms,  correspond- 
ence, etc. 

Two  hours  a  week  are  given  to  industrial  history  under  the 
instructor  in  English.  Lectures  are  given  in  the  first  hour,  and  the 
students  write  in  the  second  hour  on  the  subject  of  the  lectures.  An 
outline  of  the  topics  covered  is  given  on  page  222  of  this  report.  The 
course  treats  of  the  general  progress  of  industrial  history  mainly  in 
England  and  the  United  States.  It  may  not  be  amiss  to  suggest  that 
a  more  intensive  history  of  the  machine  trades,  at  least  as  a  point  of 
departure,  would  be  more  closely  suited  to  the  needs  and  interests 
of  the  apprentices,  since  they  are  at  work  in  those  trades. 

One  instructor,  who  acts  as  director  or  supervisor  for  the 
Cooperative  Course,  gives  considerable  time  to  interviews  with  fac- 
tory managers,  parents  and  pupils,  in  order  to  make  proper  arrange- 
ments for  placing  boys  in  factories  for  the  week  not  in  school. 
Little  or  no  effort  is,  however,  made  to  study  the  daily  work  of  the 

65  See  p.  216  for  an  outline  of  a  course  in  applied  mathematics  worked  out  mainly  in 
other  classes  of  Lewis  Institute. 


140  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

apprentices  in  the  factory  with  the  object  of  relating  the  school 
instruction  in  a  detailed  way  to  that  work.  In  this  connection  the 
cooperative  courses  in  Beverly,  Massachusetts,  and  Cincinnati,  Ohio, 
offer  suggestions  which  might  be  of  value.06 

An  important  feature  of  the  course  is  the  provision  for  shopwork 
in  school  in  addition  to  that  done  in  the  factory.  One  weakness  of 
cooperative  courses  is  that  the  student  may  be  subjected  to  more  or 
less  exploitation  in  the  factory  by  foremen  and  superintendents,  and 
that  the  factory  training  in  certain  highly  specialized  establishments 
may  not  be  so  broad  as  is  desirable.  Shopwork  in  school,  together 
with  some  form  of  supervision  by  the  school  of  the  students'  work 
in  the  factory,  should  be  of  service  in  overcoming  this  weakness  of 
cooperative  courses. 

2.  The  day  and  evening  classes  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association,  with  a  yearly  enrolment  of  about  2,000  men  and  boys, 
are  of  interest  for  our  present  purpose  mainly  because  they  indicate 
a  need  for  educational  effort  of  the  supplemental  or  continuation 
type  which  is  at  present  not  fully  met  by  the  public  schools. 

Among  the  technical  courses  offered  to  evening  classes,  the  fol- 
lowing are  not  covered  by  the  public  school  evening  classes :  steam 
and  gas  engineering,  engineering  design,  concrete  construction  and 
design,  and  heating,  ventilating  and  plumbing. 

A  day  school  for  apprentices  in  the  building  trades  is  conducted 
each  year  from  January  to  March,  inclusive,  with  an  enrolment  of 
about  50  students.  The  following  subjects  in  the  present  tentative 
course  of  study  indicate  an  effort  to  provide  more  practical  instruc- 
tion than  that  offered  in  the  corresponding  public  Apprentice  Schools 
before  the  year  1911. 

Plait-reading,  estimating  and  building  construction.  Short  methods  of 
taking  off  quantities,  cost  of  material  and  labor,  construction  methods  and 
strength  of  materials,  with  standard  hand-books  for  texts. 

Building  law.  Lectures  on  legal  relations  of  achitect,  contractor  and 
owner;  building  ordinances,  contracts,  specifications,  statements;  lien  law, 
estimates  and  tenders. 

Mechanics  of  beams,  logarithms,  slide  rule,  study  of  the  steel  square. 

The  apprentice  course  is  at  present  three  years  in  length.  Busi- 
ness English  is  offered  in  the  first  year  only,  and  practical  mathe- 
matics  in   the   second  and  third  years.     Architectural   drafting   is 

68  See  p.  207  and  p.  201. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  141 

given  each  year.     No  instruction  is  offered  in  geography,  history, 
civics  or  shopwork. 

Tuition  fees,  in  addition  to  the  Association  membership  fees,  are 
charged  for  all  classes.' 

3.  A  correspondence  course  in  printing  is  conducted  by  The 
Inland  Printer  under  the  direction  of  the  International  Typograph- 
ical Union.  The  course  aims  to  prepare  compositors  for  positions 
in  the  more  artistic  phases  of  composition  work.  Thirty-seven  les- 
sons, in  all,  are  provided:  nine  on  lettering;  ten  on  the  principles 
of  design  and  color  harmony ;  ten  on  the  application  of  these  prin- 
ciples to  various  kinds  of  composition  work ;  one  each  on  layout 
of  books,  papermaking  and  platemaking,  and  four  lessons  on  imposi- 
tion. The  distinctive  feature  of  the  instruction  is  the  emphasis 
placed  upon  the  principles  of  design  and  color  harmony,  developing 
by  this  means  the  initiative  and  independence  of  the  student  com- 
positors. 

The  International  Typographical  Union  pays  all  expenses  inci- 
dent to  advertising  the  course  and  gives  a  rebate  of  $5  on  the  regular 
tuition  fee  of  $25  to  every  student  who  completes  the  course  satis- 
factorily. Many  local  unions  offer  their  own  members  an  additional 
part  of  the  tuition  fee. 

About  1,500  students  were  enrolled  in  two  years  from  the  time 
the  course  was  established  (March,  1908). 

4.  Factory  apprentice  schools.  Of  the  181  firms  from  whom 
replies  were  received  in  connection  with  the  investigation  described 
in  Chapter  III,  only  three  reported  an  apprenticeship  system  which 
included  instruction  in  academic  branches  and  drawing.  These  three 
schools  are  briefly  described  below.  They  are  of  interest  for  our 
present  purpose  mainly  because  they  show  the  employers'  attitude 
on  the  need  for  supplementary  instruction  of  the  continuation  school 
type,  and  because  they  reveal  to  some  extent  the  possibility  of  coop- 
eration between  the  public  schools  and  the  industries. 

Diligent  inquiry  failed  to  discover  such  a  system  in  operation  in 
any  other  manufacturing  establishment  in  Chicago.  A  strong  argu- 
ment in  favor  of  continuation  schools  in  Chicago  is  thus  furnished, 
on  the  one  hand,  by  the  small  number  of  schools  of  this  character 
in  the  factories  of  the  city,  and  the  fact  that  only  the  largest  estab- 
lishments can  afford  to  provide  them  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  by 
the  testimony  of  employers  and  unions,  given  in  Chapters  III  and  IV, 
on  the  great  need  for  a  better  trained  class  of  skilled  workmen. 


142  REPORT  OX  V0CAT10XAL  TRAIXIXG 

(1)  The  Western  Electric  Company  has  a  four-year  course  for 
machinist  and  patternmaking  apprentices.  Graduates  of  manual- 
training  schools  are  given  credit  for  the  first  year's  work.  Two 
hours  a  week  are  given  to  instruction  in  mathematics,  mechanical 
drawing,  and  the  reading  of  blue-prints  and  specifications. 

(2)  The  McCormick  Works,  of  the  International  Harvester 
Company,  has  a  four-year  course  for  machinist  apprentices.  Two 
hours  a  week  are  given  to  shop  arithmetic.  Between  50  and  60 
apprentices  were  in  attendance  in  February,  1910. 

(3)  The  School  for  Apprentices  of  the  Lakeside  Press  admits 
to  the  composing-room  only  those  boys  who  are  graduates  of  the 
grammar  schools  and  who  are  between  fourteen  and  fifteen  years 
of  age.  For  the  pressroom,  sixteen  years  is  the  minimum  age 
requirement.  Boys  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  work 
4j4  hours  daily  in  the  shops,  and  spend  3^  hours  daily  in  the 
factory  schoolroom.  One-half  of  the  time  in  the  school  is  spent  in 
trade  instruction,  under  an  instructor  in  printing ;  the  other  half  is 
given  to  academic  studies  under  a  special  instructor  in  these  subjects. 
After  the  first  two  years,  apprentices  are  required  to  spend  the 
full  time  in  the  factory  shops,  and  must  take  evening  instruction, 
three  nights  a  week,  two  hours  each  night,  in  a  school  provided  by 
the  company. 

Instruction  in  the  factory  school  includes  a  review  of  arithmetic 
(factory  problems),  English,  drawing,  physiography,  simple  book- 
keeping related  to  the  printing-office,  algebra,  geometry,  and  the 
elements  of  mechanics  applied  to  the  machines,  engines  and  motors 
in  the  factory  equipment.  In  algebra,  W'ells'  Shorter  Course  is  used; 
in  geometry,  Wentworth's  First  Steps  in  Geometry.  Some  atten- 
tion is  given  to  the  history  of  the  alphabet  and  of  printing. 

The  school  was  started  in  July,  1908.  The  length  of  the  appren- 
ticeship term  is  seven  years.  About  100  apprentices  were  in  attend- 
ance in  May,  1910. 

5.  The  Coyne  National  Trade  School  is  a  short-course  trade 
school  conducted  as  a  business  undertaking  for  profit.  Tuition  fees 
range  from  $30  to  $75.  Courses  are  offered  in  plumbing,  electricity, 
bricklaying,  painting,  decorating,  paperhanging,  and  in  architectural, 
mechanical,  sheet-metal  and  carpenters'  drawing.  The  courses  in 
painting,  decorating  and  paperhanging  are  under  the  direction  of 
the  Master  Painters'  Association,  of  Chicago.  The  catalogue  states 
that  2J/2  to  3  months  are  ordinarily  required  to  complete  a  course 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  CHICAGO  143 

in  the  day  classes.  No  book  instruction  is  given  and  no  academic 
requirements  are  set  for  admission.  The  ages  of  students  range 
from  fourteen  to  fifty.  The  school  was  established  in  1902.  About 
450  students  were  enrolled  in  1909. 

Comment.  Schools  of  this  type,  run  for  profit,  exist  in  many 
cities.  Whatever  may  be  said  against  them  because  of  lack  of  thor- 
oughness and  because  of  the  opposition  they  arouse  among  union 
men,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  large  number  of  persons  who  are 
willing  to  pay  the  necessary  tuition  and  living  expenses  indicates  a 
need  for  instruction  in  the  building  trades  not  adequately  met  by 
present  provisions  in  commercial  practice.  It  is  also  evident  that  this 
need  could  be  better  met  by  public  schools  whose  graduates  should 
have  a  definite  status  as  advanced  apprentices. 

6.  The  Chicago  Technical  College  offers  two-year  courses  in 
the  day  school  in  architecture  and  civil  and  mechanical  engineering. 
No  definite  academic  requirements  are  set  for  admission.  No  shop- 
work  is  offered.  Tuition  in  the  day  school  is  $100  for  the  year  of 
nine  months  ;  in  the  evening  school,  $65,  three  evenings  a  week.  The 
total  enrolment  in  1909-10  was  about  400.  The  school  was  estab- 
lished in  1903. 


144  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER   VI 

INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 

CITIES 

GENERAL    IMPRESSIONS 


This  and  the  next  two  chapters  present  the  results  of  a  study  of 
present  provisions  for  industrial  education  in  twenty-eight  cities, 
twenty-four  of  which  were  visited  by  a  representative  of  the  com- 
mittee. For  this  purpose,  a  total  time  of  six  weeks  and  one  day 
was  spent  in  travel,  fifty-six  different  schools  being  visited. 

While  making  this  study  some  opinions  were  naturally  formed 
by  the  visitor  of  the  value  of  the  various  kinds  of  schools  and 
courses  provided  and  of  the  means  and  methods  used  in  carrying 
on  the  work.  These  general  impressions  are  presented  below. 
Forty-three  schools  are  described  in  Chapter  VII,  classified  as  to 
types.  A  statement  is  also  given  in  Chapter  VII  of  the  present 
practice  of  seven  cities  in  the  matter  of  separate  high-school  build- 
ings for  manual  training  and  technical  courses.  Chapter  VIII 
contains  a  description  of  methods  used  in  shopwork,  some  outlines 
of  drawing  and  academic  courses  and  text-books,  and  statistics  on 
the  wages  of  former  students. 

Some  General  Impressions 
The  large  number  and  great  variety  of  experiments  now  being 
conducted  in  this  country  with  industrial  schools  and  courses,  many 
of  them  started  within  the  last  three  or  four  years,  brings  one  at 
once  to  the  conclusion  that  it  is  no  longer  necessary  to  rely  solely 
on  the  experience  of  European  countries  for  examples  of  what  we 
need  in  this  country.  Of  the  cities  visited,  Boston  has  thus  far  made 
the  most  complete  provision  for  vocational  training  at  all  points  in 
the  school  course.1 

The  importance  of  intermediate  schools 

By  far  the  most  significant  of  the  schools  now  established  are 
the  prevocational  or  preparatory  trade  schools  and  courses  for  the 

1  For  an  outline  statement  of  present  provisions  for  public  industrial  education  in  day 
schools  in  six  cities,  viewing  each  city  as  a  whole,  see  pp.  131-137. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  145 

years  twelve  to  sixteen.2  For,  in  the  first  place,  in  the  trade  school 
proper,  intensive  training  for  boys  is  commonly  begun  at  sixteen 
years  of  age,  or  later,  and  this  fact  makes  it  difficult  for  the  trade 
school  to  secure  many  students  or  to  retain  them  long  after  they 
have  entered.  The  experience  of  Milwaukee  and  St.  Louis  is  evi- 
dence of  this  condition.  Most  of  the  boys  to  whom  the  trade  school 
might  appeal  come  not  from  the  high  school  but  from  a  class  who 
have  been  at  work  and  earning  money  during  the  two  years  or  more 
since  they  left  the  elementary  school.  The  feeling  of  independence 
developed  in  these  years  out  of  school  is  often  such  that  the  boy 
does  not  appreciate  the  future  advantage  of  training  in  a  trade  school 
and  is  unwilling  to  make  the  present  sacrifice  necessary  to  secure  that 
training.3  In  the  case  of  the  trade  school  for  girls  the  same  difficulty 
does  not  arise  because  the  training  is  begun  at  fourteen,  and  the 
course  is  shorter. 

The  trade  school  is  also  handicapped  somewhat  by  the  great 
expense  for  equipment  and  for  the  high  grade  of  instruction  needed. 
Moreover,  some  trades  are  disappearing  under  modern  conditions 
of  factory  production,  and  it  is,  therefore,  a  question  to  what  extent 
school  training  in  these  trades  is  worth  while.  The  field  for  the 
trade  school  proper  is  undoubtedly  important,  but  it  is  not  so  large 
nor  so  immediately  pressing  as  that  for  the  more  elementary  indus- 
trial schools  and  courses. 

In  the  second  place,  neither  the  trade  school  (for  boys)  nor  the 
technical  high  school  can  be  so  effective  as  the  more  elementary 
industrial  schools  in  meeting  the  most  important  phase  of  the 
problem  of  industrial  education  in  the  public  schools  —  namely,  how 
to  remove  the  great  waste  now  caused  by  the  large  numbers  of 
children  who  leave  school  in  grades  6  to  8,  at  fourteen  years  of  age, 
to  go  to  work,  although  the  industries  offer  little  by  way  of  training 
or  advancement  before  the'  age  of  sixteen,  and  little  by  way  of 
financial  compensation.4 

The  immediate  problem  of  industrial  education  in  the  public 
schools  is,  then,  mainly,  though  not  entirely,  a  problem  of  inter- 
mediate schools  with  their  beginnings  in  grades  6  to  8.  Such  schools 
are  able  to  discover  the  different  vocational  interests  and  abilities 
of  pupils,  to  lay  a  foundation  of  industrial  intelligence,  and  to  give 

2  See  types  1,  2,  3,  Chapter  VII. 

3  See  comments  of  employers,  Chapter  III. 

4  See  Chapter  II. 
11 


146  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

a  measure  of  manual  dexterity.  Such  schools  and  courses  take  the 
child  before  he  starts  to  work  and  give  him  a  training  that  will 
enable  him  to  advance  from  unskilled  or  less  skilled  positions  to 
positions  requiring  greater  skill  and  greater  industrial  adaptability 
or  intelligence. 

It  is  just  this  adaptability,  this  power  to  advance,  which  is  at 
present  in  greatest  demand  in  the  industries,  because  most  of  them 
do  not  furnish  the  necessary  training  themselves.  It  is  this  kind 
of  training  which  will  relieve  the  present  industrial  situation  at  the 
most  painful  point,  in  the  crowded  ranks  of  the  unskilled  and  of 
those  who  now  spend  most  or  all  of  their  lives  at  the  monotonous 
and  deadening  task  of  merely  tending  a  machine  which  performs 
only  one  of  many  processes  entering  into  the  making  of  a  finished 
article  of  production.  There  is  no  objection  to  a  boy  beginning  to 
work  at  an  automatic  machine;  but  there  is  serious  objection  if  he 
is  compelled  to  remain  long  at  that  process. 

The  strategic  importance  of  schools  and  courses  of  this  inter- 
mediate type  can  hardly  be  overemphasized.  The  high  school  has, 
of  course,  a  distinct  part  to  play  —  to  provide  technical  training  of 
a  grade  below  that  of  the  engineering  college,  for  the  increasing 
number  of  positions  between  that  of  the  engineer  on  the  one  hand 
and  that  of  the  actual  mechanic  on  the  other.  No  doubt  some  of 
these  positions  will  be  filled  by  those  who  rise  from  the  ranks  with 
no  more  special  school  training  than  that  obtained  from  the  inter- 
mediate industrial  schools  referred  to.  It  is  also  true  that  graduates 
of  technical  courses  of  a  high-school  grade  must  for  the  most  part 
acquire  the  necessary  practical  experience  by  starting  to  work  as 
actual  mechanics.  But  it  is  the  distinctive  opportunity  of  the  high 
school,  and  therefore  its  duty,  to  take  advantage  of  the  superior 
academic  training  of  its  students  by  preparing  definitely  for  such 
intermediate  positions.  It  should,  of  course,  still  be  possible  for  the 
intermediate  industrial  school  to  articulate  with  the  technical  high 
school  in  such  a  way  that  students  of  the  former  may  enter  the 
latter  school  at  appropriate  points.5 

In  this  connection  attention  should  be  called  to  the  importance 
of  having  vocational  advisers  in  the  schools,  to  study  the  oppor- 
tunities for  work  in  the  industries  and  the  different  interests  and 
abilities  of  pupils,  and  to  advise  pupils  and  parents  as  to  the  best 

5  A  good  example  of  such  an  organization  is  given  in  the  schools  of  Newton,  Massa- 
chusetts, described  on  p.  133. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  147 

course  of  training  to  pursue,  or  the  most  suitable  vocation  to  follow. 
Boston  has  one  or  more  of  such  vocational  advisers  in  each  elemen- 
tary and  high  school  in  the  city. 

There  is  still  another  type  of  industrial  school  not  yet  estab- 
lished in  this  country  and  only  slightly  developed  in  European  coun- 
tries, that  seems  to  be  greatly  needed,  namely,  a  day  continuation 
school  for  persons  at  work  in  unskilled  occupations.  Commercial 
schools  of  this  type  are  in  operation  in  the  Boston  classes  in  prepara- 
tory salesmanship.6  The  Cincinnati  Continuation  School  is  for  boys 
already  apprenticed  in  a  trade.  In  the  unskilled  occupations  there 
is  obviously  a  great  need  for  day  continuation  schools  giving  instruc- 
tion similar  in  character  to  that  now  offered  in  the  prevocational 
or  preparatory  trade  schools  already  referred  to. 

Factory  apprentice  schools 

Three  well  organized  apprentice  schools  in  factories  were  vis- 
ited —  two  conducted  by  the  General  Electric  Company,  at  West 
Lynn,  Massachusetts,  and  Schenectady.  Xew  York,  and  one  con- 
ducted by  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  Company,  at  West 
Albany,  Xew  York.  These  schools  are  excellent  examples  of  recent 
efforts  of  large  establishments  to  provide  an  apprenticeship  system 
to  take  the  place  of  the  old  system,  which  is  not  suited  to  modern 
conditions  of  factory  production.7 

In  the  first  place,  very  thorough  provision  is  made  in  the  three 
schools  mentioned  to  give  the  apprentice  an  all-around  shop  train- 
ing. In  the  two  schools  conducted  by  the  General  Electric  Company 
this  training  is  provided  for  about  half  of  the  term  in  a  separate 
training  room  with  full  factory  equipment  and  on  the  regular  com- 
mercial products  of  the  company.  The  shop  training  throughout 
the  apprentice  term  is  in  charge  of  a  supervisor  who  gives  his  whole 
time  to  the  apprentice  school.  In  the  West  Albany  School  the  shop 
training  is  given  in  the  regular  shops  of  the  company  under  the 
supervision  of  a  shop  instructor  who  gives  his  entire  time  to  this 
work. 

In  the  second  place,  instruction  in  drawing,  mathematics  and 
applied  science  is  provided  by  these  schools  during  working  hours, 
and  without  loss  of  pay  to  the  apprentices.  This  instruction  is 
closely  related  to  the  shopwork.     Especially  interesting  and   sug- 

6  See  p.  201. 

7  For  a  statement  of  the  conditions  responsible  for  the  failure  of  the  old-time  appren- 
ticeship system,  see  p.  55  ff. 


148  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

gestive  to  public  industrial  schools  are  the  courses  in  the  West 
Albany  School8  in  drawing  and  mathematics,  which  are  organized 
entirely  with  reference  to  the  needs  of  apprentices,  and  present  the 
technic  and  the  essential  principles  of  these  subjects,  not  in  the 
abstract  way  of  the  conventional  school  course,  but  always  by  way 
of  their  applications  to  shop  needs. 

Undoubtedly,  such  apprentice  schools  as  these  have  an  advantage 
over  the  public  trade  school  in  that  the  instruction  in  the  former  is 
given  under  actual  commercial  conditions  which  the  trade  school 
can,  in  general,  only  approximate.  Another  very  important  advan- 
tage of  the  factory  school  is  that  it  enables  the  boy  to  earn  money 
while  learning  a  trade.  This  is  a  very  serious  problem  in  connection 
with  the  public  trade  school,  as  already  pointed  out. 

These  factory  schools,  however,  are  essentially  business  under- 
takings, for  officers  state  that  even  as  a  productive  venture  during 
the  apprentice  term  they  are  not  a  loss  to  the  company.  It  is  prob- 
able that  only  the  larger  establishments  can  provide,  without  loss, 
such  a  thorough  and  comprehensive  training.  Unless,  therefore,  a 
much  greater  effort  is  made  by  manufacturers  in  general  to  provide 
a  modern  system  of  apprenticeship,  it  will  still  be  necessary  for  this 
training  to  be  provided,  in  part  at  least,  by  the  public,  either  in  a 
trade  school  or  in  some  form  of  cooperative  or  continuation  courses. 
Moreover,  no  matter  how  successful  the  factory  apprentice  school 
may  be  in  giving  intensive  trade  instruction  beginning  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  or  later,  it  will  still  be  necessary  for  the  public  to  provide 
the  proper  training  of  a  preparatory  kind  for  the  years  fourteen  to 
sixteen  which  are  at  present  largely  wasted,  both  to  the  industries 
and  to  the  boys  and  girls. 

Attitude  of  trade  unions 

Diligent  inquiry  was  made  in  each  city  visited  to  ascertain  from 
the  school  authorities  the  attitude  of  organized  labor  toward  the 
industrial  schools.  In  only  one  case  was  any  opposition  reported 
and  that  was  in  connection  with  a  school  supported  largely  by  asso- 
ciations of  employers.  In  many  cases,  union  men  serve  on  advisory 
committees  for  the  industrial  schools.  In  some  cases,  school  author- 
ities have  submitted  proposed  curricula  to  the  unions  for  criticism 
and  suggestions.  In  Boston  a  representative  of  the  State  Federation 
of  Labor  made  an  investigation  of  the  industrial  schools,  covering  a 

8  For  a  brief  description  of  these  courses,  see  p.  218. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  149 

week's  time,  and  returned  a  very  favorable  report.  In  general,  it 
may  be  said  that  organized  labor  is  not  only  not  opposed  to  public 
industrial  schools,  but  gives  them  its  hearty  approval  and  coopera- 
tion,9 except  where  such  schools  are  in  danger  of  being  controlled 
by  employers. 

Cooperative  courses 

Unions  have  gone  on  record10  as  being  opposed  to  cooperative 
courses,  on  the  ground  that  such  courses  put  in  the  hands  of  employ- 
ers too  much  power  to  do  injury  to  the  principles  of  unionism.  It 
is  true  that  cooperative  courses  do,  unless  properly  safeguarded,  put 
into  the  hands  of  employers  power  to  control  the  instruction  in  vari- 
ous ways  against  the  interests  of  pupils.  But  there  is  unquestion- 
ably a  large  field  of  usefulness  for  such  courses,  since  they  afford  the 
boy  an  opportunity  to  earn  money  while  continuing  his  education, 
and  since  they  provide  shop  training  under  actual  commercial  con- 
ditions and  the  opportunity  to  relate  the  academic  training  closely 
and  vitally  to  industrial  needs.  Surely  such  courses  should  be  of 
advantage  to  employers  and  workmen  alike.  It  is,  therefore,  to  be 
hoped  that  experiments  with  cooperative  courses  will  continue,  that 
employers  and  workmen  will  soon  see  their  usefulness,  and  that  the 
public  school  authorities  will  see  the  importance  of  retaining  suffi- 
cient control  to  direct  these  courses  solely  in  the  public  interest,  to 
secure  the  best  possible  training  for  the  workers.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  no  opposition  on  the  part  of  unions  is  reported  in  cities  where 
cooperative  courses  are  established. 

Cooperative  courses  now  conducted  in  public  schools  may  be 
classified  into  the  following  three  types  with  respect  to  the  time 
given  to  schoolwork : 

First,  what  may  be  called  the  "  seasonal  type,"'  as  exhibited 
in  the  Chicago  Apprentice  Schools.11  These  schools  are  for  car- 
penter apprentices  who  are  required  by  the  apprenticeship  inden- 
ture to  attend  school  three  months  a  year  during  the  dull  season 
—  January,  February  and  March.  While  attending  school 
apprentices  receive  from  the  masters  the  full  wage  called  for  by 
the  apprenticeship  indenture.  These  schools  were  started  in 
January,  1901,  and  are  the  only  schools  of  this  type  in  this  coun- 
try, so  far  as  the  writer  knows. 

8  See  p.  73  f  f. 

10  Report  of  Committee  on  Industrial  Education,  American  Federation  of  Labor,  1910. 

u  See  p.  Ill  ff. 


150  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Second,  the  plan  of  giving  alternate  weeks  to  school  and  fac- 
tory, as  in  Fitchburg  and  Beverly,  Massachusetts.  Apprentice- 
ship indentures  are  made  in  the  Fitchburg  course  but  not  in  the 
Beverly  course.  In  both  cities  pupils  are  paid  only  for  the  work 
in  the  factory. 

Third,  the  day  continuation  type  as  found  in  the  Cincinnati 
Continuation  School.  When  this  school  was  started,  employers 
voluntarily  agreed  to  cooperate  with  the  school  authorities  by 
requiring  their  apprentices  to  attend  the  continuation  school  four 
hours  a  week  without  loss  of  pay.  The  Ohio  State  law,  in  effect 
in  May,  1910,  authorizes  Boards  of  Education  to  require  youths 
at  work  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  of  age  to  attend 
part-time  day  schools  not  more  than  eight  hours  a  week. 

A  present,  though  perhaps  not  a  necessary  weakness  of  the 
cooperative  plan  should  here  be  pointed  out.  When  the  shop  train- 
ing is  left  entirely  under  factory  control  it  is  open  to  the  same 
objections  that  can  be  raised  against  the  ordinary  apprenticeship 
system  —  namely,  that  the  shop  training  may  be  no  broader  than 
that  offered  by  a  particular  establishment  in  which  the  work  in  some 
industries  is  highly  specialized,  and  that  the  boy  may  be  subjected 
to  more  or  less  exploitation  by  foremen  or  superintendents.  The 
first  objection  may  be  overcome  by  offering  shopwork  in  school. 
This  is  done  in  the  Cooperative  Course  in  Lewis  Institute,  Chicago, 
and  is  being  planned  in  the  Cleveland  and  Cincinnati  high  schools. 

To  overcome  the  second  objection  some  form  of  supervision  by 
school  authorities  of  the  shopwork  in  the  factory  is  needed.  In  Bev- 
erly this  is  done  by  an  instructor  who  spends  the  entire  week  in  the 
factory  with  one  group  of  boys,  and  the  next  week  gives  instruction 
to  the  same  group  in  school  in  drawing,  mathematics  and  science. 
All  the  boys  work  in  one  factory,  in  a  training  room  set  apart  for 
this  purpose.  In  the  Cincinnati  Continuation  School  one  instructor 
spends  at  least  two  half-days  a  week  visiting  the  eighteen  factory 
shops.  In  Beverly,  the  shop  instructor  is  paid  by  the  employers  for 
the  time  spent  in  the  factory.  In  Cincinnati,  the  employers  bear  no 
part  of  the  expense  of  the  school. 

An  important  feature  of  the  supervision  of  the  factory  work  is 
the  opportunity  it  gives  to  bring  the  school  instruction  into  close 
contact  with  industrial  needs.  In  the  Cincinnati  Continuation  School 
much  of  the  schoolwork  in  drawing,  mathematics  and  English  is 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  151 

based  on  the  blue-prints  and  trade  catalogues  of  machines  used  and 
products  made  in  the  factories.  The  following  detailed  statement  of 
the  method  of  coordinating  school  instruction  with  factory  work, 
used  in  the  cooperative  course  for  engineers  at  the  University  of 
Cincinnati,  will  be  of  interest  in  this  connection  :12 

Each  class  has  a  shop  coordinator  who  is  a  college  graduate  acquainted 
with  shop  practice.  He  spends  every  morning  at  the  university  and  every 
afternoon  in  the  shops.  His  function  is  to  make  a  direct  weekly  coordination 
of  the  work  of  the  shop  with  the  theory  of  the  university.  One  afternoon, 
for  example,  he  may  be  at  the  shops  of  a  local  manufacturing  company, 
where  he  will  observe  the  student  apprentices  at  their  work.  He  will  know 
what  they  are  turning  out,  their  speeds,  feeds  and  cuts,  the  angle  of  the  tool, 
how  the  batch  of  work  is  ticketed,  how  the  work  is  set  up,  the  power  drive  — 
everything  important  in  connection  with  the  operation.  The  next  week  these 
young  men  will  be  grouped  together  with  their  classmates  for  two  periods 
in  class,  when  he  will  explain  the  functions  of  the  particular  articles  on 
which  the  students  were  working,  in  the  machine  which  the  local  manufac- 
turing company  builds.  He  will  take  up  all  questions  of  speed,  feeds,  cuts, 
accuracy,  etc.  The  ticketing  of  the  batch  of  work  is  gone  into,  and  the  sys- 
tem of  shop  routing  is  explained.  Ultimately  all  problems  of  shop  organiza- 
tion, shop  accounting,  cost  keeping,  shop  planning,  power  transmission,  heat- 
ing, ventilating,  lighting,  etc.,  are  discussed  during  the  six  years'  course. 

In  conjunction  with  this  a  card  system  is  employed,  by  means  of  which 
everything  the  student  does  in  the  shop  that  exemplifies  a  theory  taught  in 
the  university  is  called  in  detail  to  the  attention  of  the  teacher  of  the  theory, 
so  that  when  the  student  comes  to  that  particular  theory  the  exemplifications 
which  he  has  had  in  his  practical  work  in  the  shop  are  called  to  his  attention. 
It  will  be  seen,  then,  that  out  of  the  student's  own  experience  is  drawn  much 
of  his  course  in  mechanism,  thermodynamics,  machine  design,  strength  of 
materials,  shop  economics,  etc. 

"  Industrialized  "  shopwork 

As  shown  in  the  detailed  descriptions  in  Chapter  VII  of  this 
report,  many  of  the  schools  visited  are  introducing  a  kind  of  shop- 
work  more  practical  than  that  of  the  usual  manual-training  course. 
This  is  done  by  making  products  for  sale  to  individuals  or  firms,  by 
making  equipment,  apparatus  or  furniture  for  school  use,  and  by 
doing  general  repair  work  in  and  around  school  buildings.  In  some 
schools,  students  are  paid  for  work  done.  An  effort  is  also  made 
in  the  more  elementary  courses  to  introduce  shopwork  on  materials 
other  than  wood,  such  as  bricklaying,  concretework,  plumbing,  tin- 
smithing,  sheet  metal,  bench  and  vise  work,  electricity,  forge  and 
foundry. 

12  Taken  from  an  article  by  Professor  Schneider  in  the  American  Machinist,  Septem- 
ber 9,  1909. 


152  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

In  the  more  elementary  industrial  schools  and  courses13  this 
more  practical  shopwork  has  great  significance  because  it  suggests 
a  kind  of  work  which  might  well  be  substituted  for  some  of  the 
present  work  in  manual-training  courses,  even  when  these  courses 
are  given  for  general  educational  purposes  instead  of  for  strictly- 
vocational  ends.  Interesting  experiments  in  this  direction  are  being 
conducted  in  the  elementary  grades  of  Menomonie,  Wisconsin, 
Fitchburg  and  Boston,  Massachusetts.  In  Menomonie  actual  trade- 
work  of  a  rudimentary  character  is  substituted  for  the  usual  manual 
training  in  some  classes  in  grades  six  to  eight.  In  New  York  city 
a  committee  of  the  Board  of  Education  proposed  "  to  improve  the 
efficiency  of  the  present  shop  system  in  our  elementary  schools  by 
reorganizing  the  manual  training  from  a  vocational  point  of  view 
so  that  it  may  bear  a  direct  and  immediate  relation  to  the  industrial 
efficiency  of  the  children  when  they  leave  school."14 

Manual  training  is  at  present  largely  formal  and  abstract  in  the 
sense  that  the  processes,  while  fundamentally  industrial  in  their 
nature,  are  to  a  great  extent  taken  out  of  their  industrial  or  social 
setting  and  are  given  to  the  pupil  as  a  series  of  exercises  or  problems 
which  to  him  have  little  significance  beyond  the  fact  that  they  are 
school  tasks  ;  they  are  part  of  a  course  he  takes.  No  doubt,  present 
courses  in  manual  training  have  disciplinary  value,  in  that  they  give 
training  in  muscular  coordination,  in  the  power  to  think,  and  in 
other  ways.  The  superior  value  of  the  industrial  courses  referred 
to  above,  indeed  the  feature  that  makes  them  truly  industrial,  lies 
in  the  fact  that  while  they  are  concerned  with  processes  much  the 
same  as  those  of  the  conventional  manual-training  course,  they  pre- 
sent these  processes  in  their  industrial  or  social  setting ;  the  boy 
sees  and  feels  that  his  work  has  commercial  value,  for  it  is  not  only 
usable  but  actually  used  and  needed.  The  significance  of  his  work 
in  the  work  of  the  world  is  thus  revealed  to  him.  There  is,  appar- 
ently, no  reason  why  the  present  disciplinary  value  of  manual  train- 
ing should  be  lessened,  indeed  it  should  be  deepened,  by  the  intro- 
duction of  some  of  the  industrial  work  referred  to. 

The  main  point  here  in  mind  is  that  the  practical  kind  of  shop- 
work  offered  in  the  more  elementary  industrial  schools  visited  has 
a  much  greater  educational  value  than  the  manual-training  work 
usually  offered.     Especially  is  this  the  case  when  products  are  made 

13  Types  1,  2,  3,  pp.  162-182. 

14  From  the  Minutes  of  a  meeting  held  June  24,  1908. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  153 

in  large  quantities,  as  in  the  Rochester  Factory  School,  in  the  indus- 
trial courses  in  Boston  elementary  schools,  and  in  other  schools.  In 
these  schools  the  division  of  labor  introduced  in  making  projects  in 
large  quantities  makes  it  possible  to  develop  a  spirit  of  cooperation 
and  a  sense  of  social  responsibility  largely  absent  from  the  more 
individual  work  of  the  conventional  manual  training  type.  Time 
and  cost  cards  and  checking  systems  also  aid  in  this  development. 
Such  work  acquaints  the  pupil  with  modern  methods  of  manufacture 
and  factory  organization,  and  gives  the  opportunity  to  develop 
leadership  and  organizing  ability  by  the  appointing  of  group  fore- 
men, and  to  develop  inventive  genius  in  the  making  of  jigs  or  devices 
to  facilitate  manufacture.  The  necessary  technic  —  the  manual- 
training  "  exercises  "  —  is  all  the  more  readily  mastered  as  needed 
in  the  making  of  articles  intended  for  real  use,  to  fill  a  real  need. 
Nor  is  the  frequent  repetition  of  a  single  process  necessarily 
deadening,  if  pupils  are  transferred  from  one  process  to  another  at 
suitable  intervals.  Indeed,  a  degree  of  efficiency  and  a  feeling  of 
mastery  are  thus  developed  which  are  far  from  deadening.  The 
experience  of  schools  with  this  kind  of  work  shows  that  it  is  not 
necessary  to  introduce  the  motive  of  personal  ownership  to  quicken 
the  interest  of  pupils. 

Related  academic  work  and  drawing15 

With  this  more  practical  industrial  work  an  excellent  oppor- 
tunity is  presented  to  motivate  the  other  school  subjects,  to  make 
the  shopwork  and  the  industries  in  general  the  center  from  which 
drawing  and  the  academic  subjects  radiate.  Some  schools  are  doing 
this  very  successfully ;  only  one  school  was  found  —  a  trade  school 
—  in  which  such  modified  academic  work  was  not  considered  appro- 
priate and  was,  therefore,  not  attempted.  An  interesting  example 
of  this  kind  of  correlation  is  given  in  the  methods  used  in  the  Indus- 
trial School,  at  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts.16  The  course  in  draw- 
ing in  the  apprenticeship  system  of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad 
would  be  a  revelation  to  many  teachers  who  think  it  necessary  to 
postpone  the  applications  of  drawing  until  a  series  of  "  exercises 
on  the  use  of  drawing  instruments  and  on  certain  geometrical  prob- 
lems is  completed.  In  the  New  York  Central  course  the  applications 
of  drawing  to  shopwork  are  presented  from  the  beginning,  the 
technic  being  mastered  as  it  is  needed  in  the  applied  problems.     In 

15  For   some   outlines  of  courses  and   text-books  developed   in   schools   visited,    see   pp. 
215-231. 


154  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

arithmetic,  mensuration  and  mechanics,  this  vital  relation  to  shop- 
work  is  also  maintained. 

What  is  greatly  needed  in  the  academic  work  of  industrial  schools 
is  a  number  of  text  and  reference  books  dealing  with  academic  mat- 
ter closely  related  to  the  industries  represented  in  these  schools.  At 
present  it  is  necessary  for  teachers  themselves  to  organize  this  sub- 
ject-matter while  doing  the  regular  work  of  instruction.  A  few 
mathematical  books  of  the  kind  needed  have  already  appeared.15 

Courses  in  citizenship  and  in  industrial  history  could  be  made 
especially  valuable  in  vocational  schools,  for  by  means  of  these  sub- 
jects some  of  the  most  pressing  social  problems  of  to-day  could  be 
presented  in  a  very  direct  and  vital  way.  The  continuation  schools 
of  Munich,  Germany,  have  excellent  courses  in  these  subjects,  each 
very  closely  related  to  a  particular  trade.17  In  this  country  very 
little  has  yet  been  done  in  this  direction.  Most  of  the  industrial 
history  now  offered  treats  only  of  the  general  development  of  indus- 
try —  the  Industrial  Revolution,  the  Guilds,  etc.  This  is,  of  course, 
worth  while,  but  it  is  likely  to  be  more  or  less  remote  and  abstract 
to  the  tradeworker.  It  would  be  better  to  start  with  the  history 
of  the  particular  industry  or  industries  represented  in  a  given  school 
or  community  and  then  generalize.  A  very  interesting  example  of 
such  a  course  is  the  one  in  the  history  of  the  boot  and  shoe  industry, 
in  the  high  school  at  Brockton,  Massachusetts.18  In  only  two  other 
schools  was  such  a  course  found  —  in  the  Cincinnati  Continuation 
School,  in  which  some  instruction  was  given  in  the  history  of  the 
iron  and  steel  industry,  and  in  the  Pre-apprentice  School,  Boston,  in 
which  lectures  are  given  on  the  history  of  printing.19 

The  academic  subjects  now  being  developed  in  vocational  schools 
are  of  considerable  significance  also  because  of  the  suggestions  they 
offer  for  the  reorganization  of  the  academic  subjects  in  the  regular 
elementary  and  secondary  school  curricula.  There  is  much  discus- 
sion at  present  of  the  importance  of  simplifying  the  course  of  study, 
especially  in  the  elementary  school,  and  of  eliminating  some  things 
altogether.  The  vocational  schools  may  well  serve  as  experiment 
stations  to  point  out  the  direction  which  this  simplification  and 
elimination  should  take.     In  the  Cleveland  Elementary   Industrial 

16  See  p.  214. 

17  See  p.  119  ff.  and  p.  222  ff.  See  also  Organisation  und  Lehrplane  der  Oblgatorischen 
Fach  und  Fortbildungs-'Schulen  fiir  Knaben  in  Munchen,  1910. 

18  See  p.  218  ff. 

19  See  p.  221. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  155 

School  a  very  conscious  effort   is  made  to   work  out  a  simplified 
course  of  study  with  this  larger  end  in  view. 

It  is  frequently  charged  that  the  instruction  in  the  elementary 
school  is  not  suited  to  the  abilities  and  interests  of  the  pupils ;  that 
it  is  "  fitted  not  to  the  slow  child  or  to  the  average  child,  but  to  the 
unusually  bright  one."20  Hence  there  are  many  over-age  children 
in  the  grades,  many  who  fail  to  be  promoted  and  then  lose  interest 
and  drop  out  of  school.  Many  of  these  retarded  children  are  pres- 
ent in  the  elementary  industrial  schools  visited,  and  many  teachers 
have  testified  to  the  remarkable  progress  made  by  these  children 
under  a  kind  of  instruction  which  is  suited  to  their  interests  and 
abilities.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  regular  elementary 
school  has  important  lessons  to  learn  from  the  work  of  these  voca- 
tional schools. 

Qualifications  of  teachers 

Because  of  the  newness  of  the  industrial  schools,  teachers  with 
proper  qualifications  for  these  schools  are  scarce  —  both  in  the  shop- 
work  and  drawing  and  in  the  academic  subjects.  To  a  considerable 
extent,  traditional  standards  and  methods  must  be  abandoned,  espe- 
cially in  the  academic  subjects,  and  teachers  must  strike  out  boldly 
in  the  direction  of  industrial  needs.  Much  of  the  conventional 
subject  matter  must  be  eliminated,  partly  for  lack  of  time  and 
partly  because  it  is  not  suited  to  industrial  needs.  Much  new  matter 
must  also  be  introduced.  The  different  subjects  of  study  must  be 
unified  as  far  as  possible  —  mathematics  must  not  be  separated 
into  water-tight  compartments  of  arithmetic,  algebra,  geometry  and 
trigonometry,  but  these  branches  must  be  interwoven  into  a  single 
subject  in  close  relation  to  its  applications  in  science  and  in  the  work 
of  the  shop.  All  this  requires  a  kind  of  ability  and  training  not  yet 
widely  developed  in  teachers, 

For  the  shopwork,  teachers  are  needed  who  have  had  practical 
experience  in  commercial  shops,  and  who  also  know  how  to  teach. 
The  combination  is  hard  to  get.  It  is  especially  difficult  for  men 
with  years  of  practical  experience  in  commercial  work  to  adapt 
themselves  to  the  work  of  teaching  the  younger  pupils,  unless  they 
have  much  native  ability  in  this  direction.  Of  the  shopwork 
observed  by  the  writer,  the  poorest  in  technical  finish  was  done  by 
boys  under  the  instruction  of  expert  mechanics  with  years  of  expe- 

20  Ayres:    Laggards  in  Our  Schools,  p.  5. 


156  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

rience  at  the  trade.  Such  instructors  are  too  likely  to  be  satisfied 
with  a  poor  quality  of  work  from  the  pupils  on  the  ground  that  they 
are  too  young  to  do  better.  On  the  other  hand,  some  of  the  best 
quality  of  shopwork  observed  was  done  by  grammar-school  boys 
under  the  instruction  of  women  who  could  teach.  Under  present 
conditions,  the  right  kind  of  a  shop  instructor,  especially  for  younger 
pupils,  can  perhaps  be  most  readily  obtained  by  adding  to  the  equip- 
ment of  a  trained  teacher  some  practical  experience  in  commercial 
shops.  Some  teachers  are  now  preparing  themselves  in  this  way. 
The  practical  mechanic  obtained  from  commercial  shops  is  more 
likely  to  succeed  with  older  pupils  in  advanced  courses. 

Separate  buildings  for  industrial  courses 

There  is  much  discussion  as  to  whether  industrial  courses  should 
be  offered  in  separate  buildings  with  a  principal  and  teaching  staff 
devoted  exclusively  to  this  work,  or  whether  such  courses  should 
be  given  in  the  same  buildings  with  general  courses,  and  under  the 
same  principal  and  teaching  staff.  On  the  one  hand  it  is  urged  that 
the  separate  building  and  teaching  staff  is  necessary  if  vocational 
courses  are  to  reach  their  full  development.  Many  academic  prin- 
cipals and  teachers,  it  is  claimed,  are  not  yet  in  full  sympathy  with 
this  work,  and  have  not  the  qualifications  necessary  to  give  the 
vocational  courses  a  distinctive  aim.  The  industrial  course  should 
have  the  advantage  of  a  distinctly  industrial  atmosphere  and  routine 
which  can  not  readily  be  secured  in  the  conventional  school.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  is  argued  that  separate  industrial  schools  would 
tend  to  produce  a  social  stratification  of  pupils  and  parents  which 
would  work  against  the  principles  of  a  democratic  society. 

In  most  of  the  cities  visited  the  more  advanced  industrial  courses 
in  public  schools  are  in  separate  buildings.  Optional  courses  in 
grammar  schools  are,  with  one  exception,  not  in  separate  buildings. 
Of  the  preparatory  trade  schools  all  but  one  are  in  separate  buildings. 
Trade  courses  proper  are,  with  two  exceptions,  in'  separate  buildings. 
In  high  schools,  the  tendency  in  large  cities  is,  on  the  whole,  to  offer 
technical  courses  in  separate  buildings.21 

There  seems  to  be  no  good  reason  why  industrial  courses,  at 
least  the  more  elementary  courses,  should  not  ultimately  be  offered 
in  the  same  buildings  with  other  courses.  Surely  the  conventional 
schoolwork  could  profit  greatly  by  close  association  with  industrial 

;iSee  p.  209  ff. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  157 

courses.     Moreover,  in  small  communities  it  might  be  financially 
unwise  to  establish  separate  buildings  for  this  purpose. 

Whether  academic  principals  and  teachers  are  in  sympathy  with 
industrial  education  is  a  matter  to  be  determined  in  a  given  case ; 
if  they  are  not,  it  is  more  than  likely  that  the  experiment  will  not 
succeed  in  that  instance.  It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  indus- 
trial courses  should  preserve  their  integrity,  that  they  should  be 
really  industrial  if  they  pretend  to  be.  In  the  present  experimental 
stage  of  this  work  the  separate  school,  with  a  teaching  staff  concen- 
trated upon  and  consecrated  to  the  problem  in  hand,  could  be  of 
great  service  in  developing  a  content  and  method  for  industrial 
courses.  In  the  larger  cities  such  instruction  could,  no  doubt,  at 
first  be  offered  both  in  regular  buildings  and  in  separate  buildings. 
When  industrial  education  is  once  thoroughly  established,  with  a 
definite  content  and  method,  it  should  not  be  impossible  to  unite  the 
various  educational  efforts  into  a  single  system  so  as  to  preserve  a 
proper  social  balance. 

Industrial  education  for  girls 

Four  types  of  industrial  education  for  girls  were  found  in  public 
schools,  as  follows : 

(1)  Home-making  courses  in  elementary  grades.  Four 
hours  a  week  in  the  Washington-Allston  School,  Boston  [page 
167]  ;  ten  hours  a  week  in  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts  [page  164]. 

(2)  Preparatory  trade  schools  for  the  years  fourteen  to 
sixteen,  giving  half  of  the  school  time  to  dressmaking,  millinery 
and  household  science  —  the  Albany  Vocational  School  [page 
173],  the  Cleveland  Elementary  Industrial  School"  [page  16S], 
and  the  Vocational  School  at  Yonkers.  New  York  [page  177]. 

(3)  Trade  schools  proper,  beginning  at  fourteen  years  of 
age,  giving  most  of  the  school  time  to  intensive  trade  training, 
and  comparatively  little  to  homemaking  and  academic  subjects  — 
New  York  city  [page  186],  Boston  [page  187],  and  Milwaukee 
[page  189].  Dressmaking  and  millinery  are  taught  in  all  these 
schools.  The  New  York  and  Boston  schools  offer  in  addition 
power  machine  operating  on  clothing  and  straw  hats  and  (in 
New  York  only)  novelty  work  and  trade  art.  The  courses  are 
from  a  year  to  a  year  and  a  half  in  length. 

22  The  Cleveland  school  is  at  present  exclusively  for  over-age  children.  It  is  not  yet 
giving  all  the  work  indicated,  but  will  probably  develop  in  that  direction. 


158  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

(4)  Four-year  courses  in  high  school,  giving  from  one-half 
to  two-thirds  of  the  school  time  to  handwork,  including  applied 
art,  with  specialization  in  the  latter  part  of  the  course  in  dress- 
making, millinery  and  domestic  science.  In  the  Boston  High 
School  of  Practical  Arts  specialization  is  permitted  in  the  last 
three  years,  in  Cleveland  and  Cincinnati  in  the  last  two  years, 
and  in  Newton,  Massachusetts,  in  the  last  year  [see  pages  193- 
196].  In  Cleveland,  Cincinnati  and  Newton,  some  form  of 
cooperative  work,  alternating  between  school  and  industrial 
establishments,  will  probably  be  offered  in  the  last  year  or  two 
of  the  course. 

With  reference  to  the  segregation  of  boys  and  girls  the  above 
schools  may  be  classified  as  follows : 

(1)  In  separate  buildings  exclusively  for  girls:  the  Boston 
High  School  of  Practical  Arts,  and  the  trade  schools  in  New 
York,  Boston  and  Milwaukee. 

(2)  In  the  same  buildings  with  boys,  but  classes  segregated 
in  academic  subjects  as  well  as  in  handwork:  the  Albany  Voca- 
tional School,  the  Cleveland  Elementary  Industrial  School,  the 
Yonkers  Vocational  School,  and  the  Cleveland,  Cincinnati  and 
Newton-3  Technical  High  Schools. 

(3)  In  the  same  buildings  with  boys,  and  classes  not  segre- 
gated in  academic  subjects :  the  Washington- Allston  School, 
Boston,  and  the  Fitchburg  Grammar  School. 

A  strong  tendency  toward  segregation  is  noticed  in  the  above 
schools  —  in  only  two  cases  are  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  same  classes 
in  academic  subjects.  In  most  cases  the  boys  and  girls  are  in  the 
same  buildings,  but  meet  in  separate  classes  for  the  academic  sub- 
jects and  for  handwork.  Such  separation  is,  no  doubt,  called  for 
by  the  fact  that  the  subject  matter  in  the  classes  for  girls  differs 
greatly  from  that  in  the  classes  for  boys. 

In  general,  it  may  be  said  that  provisions  for  training  in  indus- 
trial occupations  are  not  yet  as  fully  developed  for  girls  as  for  boys. 
There  are  many  reasons  for  this.  Some  educators  still  have  the 
more  or  less  sentimental  idea  that  training  for  girls  should  prepare 
only  for  homemaking,  ignoring  the  fact  that  many  must  and  do  work 
for  a  number  of  years  outside  of  the  home.     Training  in  home- 

23  Only  the  extra-technical  course. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  159 

making  must,  nevertheless,  be  included  in  industrial  education  for 
girls,  as  well  as  training  for  a  trade  or  other  occupation,  and  this 
two-fold  phase  of  the  problem  introduces  complications. 

The  problem  of  deciding  what  trades  should  be  taught  to  girls  is 
a  difficult  one.  At  present  dressmaking  and  millinery  are  the  main 
trades  taught  in  public  industrial  schools.  The  opportunities  in 
industrial  occupations  are  not  as  great  for  women  as  for  men.  Girls 
with  the  necessary  academic  training  are  more  likely  to  enter  com- 
mercial pursuits,  which  are  in  general  more  attractive  in  working 
conditions  and  in  a  financial  way. 

Nevertheless,  many  girls  do  enter  the  various  factories,  having 
left  school  at  fourteen  years  of  age  in  grades  below  the  eighth.  They 
start  to  work  at  unskilled  or  only  slightly  skilled  occupations.  The 
wages  are  low,  little  opportunity  is  presented  in  some  lines  for  train- 
ing leading  to  advanced  positions,  and  yet  the  demand  for  skilled 
workers  is  in  some  cases  great.  The  problem  of  industrial  education 
for  girls  who  leave  school  in  the  lower  grades  at  fourteen  years  of 
age  is  just  as  important  as  the  corresponding  problem  for  boys. 
Girls  as  well  as  boys  at  this  age  need  training  which  will  develop  the 
capacity  for  promotion.  For  the  girls,  trade  training  of  either  the 
preparatory  or  the  intensive  type  may  be  begun  at  fourteen,  while 
for  the  boys  the  intensive  training  is  commonly  postponed  until 
sixteen. 

The  whole  question  of  women  in  the  industries  needs  thorough 
study  to  ascertain  what  the  present  conditions  and  opportunities  are, 
and  what  the  possibility  is  of  improving  these  conditions  and  oppor- 
tunities, and  of  opening  new  opportunities,  by  appropriate  training. 
The  New  York  and  Boston  trade  schools  have  done  excellent  serv- 
ice in  this  direction.  The  experience  of  these  schools  shows  that  o  ad- 
ditions may  differ  widely  in  different  communities,  not  only  in  the 
kinds  of  industries  present  but  also  in  the  conditions  prevailing  in  a 
given  industry.  To  decide  what  trades  should  be  taught  in  a  trade 
school  for  girls  it  is,  therefore,  important  to  study  the  industries  open 
to  women  in  a  given  community  to  ascertain  which  employ  large 
numbers  of  women ;  which  industries  require  skilled  workers  :  which 
offer  the  opportunity  of  a  steady  rise  to  better  positions  :  which  do 
not  adequately  provide  the  necessary  training  themselves  ;  which  pay 
good  wages  for  reasonable  hours  of  work  ;  which  are  conducted 
under  proper  physical,  sanitary  and  moral  conditions ;  which  provide 
work  the  year  around,  and,  in  the  case  of  seasonal  trades,  what 


160  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

opportunities  exist  for  the  worker  to  use  the  dull  season  in  one  trade 
for  work  in  another  trade.  Moreover,  this  close  study  of  the  indus- 
tries must  be  continued  after  the  trade  school  is  started,  in  order  to 
adjust  the  instruction  to  the  changing  conditions  in  the  industries  due 
to  the  change  in  fashions  and  to  the  introduction  of  new  machinery. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  161 


CHAPTER   VII 

INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 
CITIES  (Continued) 

DETAILED    DESCRIPTIONS 


Forty-three  schools  are  described  under  I,  below,  classified  as  to 
types.  All  but  four  of  the  schools  described  were  visited  by  the 
committee's  representative.  In  the  descriptions,  matters  of  general 
organization,  curriculum,  entrance  requirements,  etc.,  are  presented. 
To  give  an  idea  of  the  industrial  character  of  the  shopwork,  lists  of 
products  are  also  included  in  cases  where  such  lists  were  obtainable 
and  were  of  general  interest.  Under  II  a  statement  is  given  of  the 
present  practice  of  seven  cities  in  the  matter  of  separate  high-school 
buildings  for  manual  training  and  technical  courses. 

I.    Industrial  Schools  and  Courses  Classified  as  to  Types1 

The  schools  and  courses  described  in  this  section  may  be  clas- 
sified into  the  following  six  types  : 

(1)  Optional  industrial  courses  for  grades  6  to  8,  inclusive, 
parallel  to  existing  grammar-school  courses,  and  not  jeopardizing 
the  pupil's  chances  of  being  graduated  in  the  usual  time. 

(2)  Industrial  schools  and  courses  for  elementary  school  pupils 
twelve  to  fifteen  years  of  age,  which  do  not  offer  the  possibility  of 
graduation  in  the  usual  time. 

(3)  Preparatory  trade  schools  for  the  years  fourteen  to  sixteen. 

(4)  Trade  schools  proper,  giving  intensive  training,  beginning 
usually  at  the  age  of  sixteen  for  boys  and  fourteen  for  girls. 

(5)  Technical  and  trade  courses  in  high  schools. 

1  The  descriptions  of  the  schools  visited  are  based  partly  on  observations  recorded  at 
the  time  of  the  visit,  partly  on  statements  made  to  the  visitor  by  teachers  and  supervisory 
officers,  and  partly  on  printed  statements  in  school  announcements.  An  earnest  effort  was 
made  to  verify  by  means  of  personal  observation,  whenever  possible,  statements  obtained 
from  teachers  and  printed  announcements,  and  to  properly  discount  certain  "  overstate- 
ments"  made  by  persons  enthusiastically  interested  in  industrial  education. 

The  schools  in   this  section  which  were  not  visited  by  the  committee's   representative 
are:     The  Vocational  and  Trade  Schools,  Vonkers,  New  York  [p.  1771:    The  Trade  S 
for    Machinists,     Saginaw,    Michigan    [p.     1S51  ;      the    High    School,     Muskegon.     Mic 
[p.  199];    the  Munich  Continuation  Schools  [p.  204]. 

12 


162  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

(6)  Cooperative  courses  of  the  day  continuation  type2  and  of 
the  alternate-week  type. 

The  first  three  types  might  well  be  grouped  as  "  intermediate 
industrial  schools  and  courses,"  since  they  are  intermediate  in  the 
sense  of  being  preceded  by  the  first  five  or  six  elementary  grades, 
and  of  being  followed  by  advanced  courses  in  industrial  or  other 
schools. 

The  schools  not  specifically  mentioned  as  private  schools  are 
conducted  under  public  auspices. 

1.     Optional  Industrial  Courses  in  Grammar  School  not  Interfering 
with  Regular  Graduation 

1.  In  grades  6  to  8,  inclusive,  of  the  public  schools  of  Menom- 
onie,  Wisconsin,  trade  instruction  of  a  rudimentary  character  is 
offered  to  a  few  classes  in  place  of  the  usual  courses  in  manual 
training.  This  work  is  being  conducted  as  an  experiment  by  the 
Stout  Institute,  a  training  school  for  teachers  of  manual  training 
and  domestic  science.  The  same  amount  of  time  per  week  is  given 
to  the  industrial  work  as  is  given  to  the  usual  manual  training  in 
Menomonie.  The  regular  academic  work  is  carried  along  with  the 
industrial  work. 

The  object  of  this  experiment  is  to  determine  the  value  which 
trade  instruction  in  the  grammar  grades,  as  a  substitute  for  manual 
training,  has  to  offer  for  general  training  or  cultural  purposes  and 
for  vocational  preparation  for  pupils  who  must  leave  school  at  the 
end  of  the  elementary  period.  The  work  was  given  for  the  first 
time  in  the  year  1909-10. 


2  No  description  is  given  of  evening  continuation  courses  for  the  reason  that  problems 
of  organization  and  curriculum  are  much  simpler  for  these  schools  than  for  the  day  con- 
tinuation schools,  and  for  the  further  reason  that  the  demand  for  evening  industrial 
courses  is  already  well  recognized  in  Chicago  and  excellent  courses  are  in  operation. 

A  good  description  of  evening  industrial  courses  offered  by  branches  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  and  by  forty-seven  other  schools,  public  and  private,  may  be 
found  in    Bulletin   11   of   the   National   Society   for  the   Promotion  of   Industrial   Education. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  163 

Following  is  an  outline  of  the  industrial  courses  offered : 


Grade 

Courses  offered 

Number  of  weeks 

Minutes  per  week 

VI 

Problems     in     practical 
carpentry  

Practical  repair  work .  .  . 

Tin  smithing 

Bricklaying  and  concrete- 
work  

Plumbing 

36 

6 
12 

18 

18 
18 

VII 

VIII 

120 

180 
180 

180 
160 

Cabinetwork 

160 

The  character  of  the  courses  is  shown  in  a  more  detailed  way  by 
the  following  statement  of  the  work : 


GRADE   VI 

Carpentry 

Three  houses  were  built  in  miniature.  The  smallest,  three  feet  by  five 
feet,  is  a  two-story  braced  frame,  with  no  inside  partitions.  The  middle 
house,  six  by  eight,  is  a  two-story  balloon  frame,  with  staircase  and  closet 
on  the  first  floor.  The  largest,  eight  feet  by  fifteen  feet,  is  a  three-room 
bungalow,  with  full  headroom,  with  a  chimney  and  fireplace  put  up  by  the 
bricklaying  class,  and  with  plumbing  fixtures  for  the  kitchen  and  bath 
installed  by  the  plumbing  class.  The  large  house  is  to  be  shingled  and  clap- 
boarded,  upper  floors  are  to  be  laid,  two  of  the  rooms  sheathed  and  one  of 
them  plastered. 

GRADE   VII 

Repair  work 

Each  boy  has  set  a  small  window,  repaired  a  broken  chair  or  other  piece 
of  furniture,  refinished  a  chair,  fitted  a  key  to  a  door  or  drawer  lock,  some- 
times repairing  small  parts  of  the  lock,  sharpened  an  axe  or  knife  or  a  pair  of 
shears  or  skates,  cemented  a  dish  or  glued  a  broken  article,  polished  a  piece 
of  metal,  and  soldered  a  tin  dish.  Most  boys  brought  articles  from  home  for 
repair. 


Tinsmithing 

Bending  square  corner,  laying  out  and  cutting  to  line,  riveting  straight 
joint,  soldering  holes,  soldering  straight  joint,  making  soldered  square  tin 
box,  riveting  and  soldering  cylindrical  tube,  cutting  and  bending  curves, 
making  funnel,  making  tin  dust  pan  with  handle,  making  box  with  cover, 
making  and  joining  of  two  square  tubes  at  a  45-degree  angle. 


164  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

GRADES  VII  AND  VIII 

Plumbing,  bricklaying  and  concrete  work 

Boys  in  grammar  grades,  and  some  in  the  last  two  years  of  the  high 
school,  worked  together  in  plumbing,  bricklaying  and  concrete  work. 

Plumbing  included  a  study  of  iron  pipe  and  fittings,  the  running  of  soil 
pipe  with  vertical  and  horizontal  joints  and  a  series  of  soldering  exercises. 
Complete  installation  of  school  kitchen  and  chemical  laboratory  fixtures, 
including  the  setting  up  of  individual  gas  stoves,  sinks  with  necessary  connec- 
tions, an  instantaneous  hot-water  heater  for  the  kitchen  and  several  lead-lined 
sinks  for  the  laboratory.  A  good  deal  of  structural  and  rail  work  was  done 
with  iron  piping. 

Bricklaying  and  concrete  work  included  a  study  of  systems  of  bonding, 
the  building  of  walls  and  arches  of  brick  and  concrete,  the  building  of  brick 
chimneys  and  fireplaces,  laying  of  pavement  for  a  sidewalk,  and  considerable 
work  with  cement. 

All  the  brickwork  and  plumbing  for  a  small  annex  to  one  of  the  school 
buildings  was  done  by  pupils  in  these  classes. 

2.  In  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts,  a  differentiated  curriculum  for 
grades  7  and  8,  with  one-third  of  the  time  given  to  work  in  manual 
arts,  household  arts  and  commercial  studies,  is  offered  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Fitchburg  State  Normal  School  to  pupils  from  any 
part  of  Fitchburg  who  have  completed  the  sixth  grade.  Four 
courses,  as  outlined  below,  are  offered,  the  completion  of  any  one  of 
which  admits  to  the  high  school. 

In  the  Manual  Arts  Course  10  hours  a  week  are  given  to  draw- 
ing, designing,  making  and  repairing. 

In  the  Household  Arts  Course  10  hours  a  week  are  given  to 
work  in  domestic  art  and  science. 

In  the  Commercial  Course  5  hours  a  week  are  given  to  book- 
keeping, business  forms  and  procedure,  business  arithmetic  and 
related  design,  and  5  hours  to  typewriting  and  handwork. 

In  the  Literary  Course  5  hours  a  week  are  given  to  a  modern 
language,  and  5  hours  to  drawing,  designing,  making  and  repairing, 
for  the  boys,  and  household  arts  for  the  girls. 

In  all  courses  12^  hours  a  week  are  given  to  English,  mathe- 
matics, geography,  history  and  science,  and  7^  hours  to  physical 
training,  music,  general  exercises  and  recesses. 

The  Literary  Course  is  designed  for  those  who  expect  to  go  on 
through  high  school  and  college.  The  other  courses,  while  admitting 
to  the  high  school,  aim  also  to  give  a  practical  preparation  for  life- 
work  to  those  who  expect  to  leave  school  at  fourteen  years  of  age. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITI1  165 

The  school  is  in  session  30  hours  (GO  minutes  each)  a  week,  and 
was  opened  for  the  first  time  in  September,  1009,  with  150  pupils. 
Two  journeymen  carpenters  and  one  painter  assist  the  regular  man- 
ual-training instructors  in  directing  the  handwork  of  the  boys.  Ten 
cents  an  hour  is  paid  to  the  boys  for  repair  work  done  for  the  school 
outside  of  school  hours. 

A  kitchen,  dining-room  and  bedroom  are  provided  for  the  work 
in  homemaking.  Following  is  a  statement  of  handwork  undertaken 
in  the  Manual  Arts  and  Household  Arts  courses : 

Ordinary  repairs 

Faucets  in  the  buildings  repacked.  Schoolroom  desks  and  tables  scraped 
and  refinished.  Setting  glass.  Lawn  mowers  taken  apart,  cleaned,  oiled  and 
sharpened.  Window  screens  painted.  Decayed  basement  floors  rclaid. 
Broken  furniture  glued.  Chairs  reseated.  Rubber  pads  on  the  stairs  taken 
up,  turned  and  retacked. 

Woodworking 

Work  benches,  looms  and  sawhorses  constructed.  Assisted  in  making 
kitchen  tables.  Making  teachers'  desks  for  entire  building.  Building  parti- 
tions and  300  lockers. 

Painting  and  finishing 

Steam  pipes  bronzed  to  match  color  of  the  walls.  Floors  oiled.  Chairs 
for  building  bought  in  the  white,  finished  and  seated  by  pupils.  Kitchen, 
dining-room,  woodworking  room  and  locker  rooms  painted.  Work  benches 
and  teachers'  desks  finished.    Library  room  painted  and  papered. 

Grading  and  walks 

Work  upon  the  grading,  building  of  concrete  walls  and  granolithic  walks. 
Each  boy  has  plotted  the  grounds  and  walks  and  taken  levels  under  competent 
direction. 

Household  arts 

The  girls  have  made  their  needlebooks  and  workbags,  their  gymnasium 
suits  and  the  bags  to  carry  them  in,  also  their  caps  and  aprons  for  cooking. 
They  have  hemmed  the  towels  for  the  kitchen,  made  covers  lor  IS  type- 
writers, and  for  170  bean  bags  to  be  used  in  games  in  the  gymnasium.  They 
have  repaired  the  flags  for  the  school  building,  darned  the  rug  in  the  recep- 
tion room,  and  are  to  make  overalls  and  jumpers  for  the  boys  to  use  in 
painting.  They  have  cleaned  the  windows  in  the  kitchen,  dining-room  and 
sewing-room,  cleaned  all  the  basins  in  the  new  building,  and  have  reseated 
chairs. 


166  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Applied  art  for  girls 

Stenciling  of  designs  upon  workbags  and  needlebooks.  Designing  covers 
for  and  binding  books  and  magazines.  Crocheting  table  mats  for  dining- 
room  and  knitting  washcloths. 

The  practical  character  of  the  work  in  typewriting  is  shown  by 
the  following  statement : 

Typewriting 

Copying  of  letters  to  industrial  plants  in  various  towns  and  cities  of 
Massachusetts,  asking  for  material  for  industrial  exhibit.  Original  letters 
to  school  children  in  different  parts  of  New  England,  telling  of  Fitchburg 
industries,  and  requesting  replies  concerning  the  industries  of  their  cities. 
Copying  letters  to  parents,  explaining  courses  offered.  Manifolding  copies 
of  poems  and  songs  used  in  seventh  and  eighth  grades.  Copying  bills  for 
books,  school  supplies,  and  materials  used  at  manual  arts  school.  Practice 
in  writing  business  letters  and  business  forms.  Typewriting  language  and 
spelling  lessons. 

3.  In  Boston,  Massachusetts,  optional  industrial  courses  are  pro- 
vided in  grades  6  to  8,  inclusive,  requiring  five  hours  a  week,  but 
not  interfering  with  the  pupils'  chances  of  being  graduated  in  the 
usual  time  from  the  elementary  school.  The  industrial  work  is  sub- 
stituted for  the  regular  work  in  manual  training,  drawing  and  arith- 
metic. Four  schools  offer  such  courses  in  woodwork  and  book- 
binding. One  school  has  140  pupils  in  these  courses  ;  another  school 
has  75. 

In  the  eighth  grade  of  one  of  these  schools,  two  of  the  five  hours 
a  week  are  given  to  free-hand  and  mechanical  drawing,  all  bearing 
on  the  shop  projects.  In  the  free-hand  drawing,  illustrated  cata- 
logues of  the  shop  projects  were  made,  similar  in  character  to  cata- 
logues of  manufacturing  firms. 

Following  is  a  list  of  objects  made  by  one  class  in  three  years : 

In  Grade  VI 

850  pasteboard  chalk  boxes  for  the  Supply  Department 

1,700  pasteboard  crayon  boxes  for  use  in  elementary  schools 

500  pasteboard  pencil  boxes,  cloth-covered,  for  use  in  high  schools 

710  Harvard  covers  for  use  in  high  schools 

846  wooden  sand  shovels  for  use  in  summer  playgrounds 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  167 

In  Grade  VII 

34  portfolios  for  use  in  the  Evening  Industrial  School 
333  plasticine  boards  for  modeling  classes 

266  wooden  looms,  266  heddles,  522  shuttles  —  for  the  sixth-grade  weav- 
ing of  the  elementary  schools 

100  wooden  specimen  boxes  for  use  in  the  Normal  School 

36  workboxes 

6  wooden  cases  for  the  Evening  Industrial  School  (begun) 

In  Grade  VIII 

Completion  of  6  cases  above  noted 

100  plasticine  boards  for  modeling  classes 

4  window  ventilators 

24  wooden  trays  for  cardboard-construction  equipment 

100  wooden  bench  hooks  for  the  Supply  Department 

1,000  wooden  bench  stops  for  the  Supply  Department 

600  specimen  blocks  for  the  Agassiz  School 

2,400  card-catalogue  boxes  for  the  School  Department   (begun) 

In  one  sixth-grade  class  of  75  boys  and  girls  in  bookbinding,  500 
books  from  neighboring  school  libraries  were  rebound  and  2,000 
stenographers'  notebooks  were  made,  in  nine  months,  each  pupil 
working  four  hours  a  week. 

4.  In  the  Washington-Allston  Elementary  School,  Boston,  Mas- 
sachusetts, the  industrial  work  takes  the  form  of  providing  a  com- 
plete equipment  for  a  model  five-room  apartment,  full  size,  adjacent 
to  the  regular  school  building.  There  are  600  boys  and  girls  in  this 
school,  in  grades  4  to  8,  inclusive.  Four  hours  a  week  are  given  to 
industrial  work  in  grades  7  and  8,  and  two  hours  a  week  in  the  other 
grades. 

The  five  rooms  include  a  living-room,  dining-room,  kitchen,  bed- 
room and  laundry.  A  garden  is  connected  with  the  apartment  build- 
ing, and  contains  pear  trees,  cold  frames  and  about  fifty  beds  of 
various  kinds  of  vegetables. 

The  equipment  for  the  five  rooms,  made  and  installed  by  the 
pupils,  includes  wall  coverings  of  burlap,  draperies,  shelving,  built-in 
cabinets,  and  window  seats  ;  and  about  $250  worth  of  furniture, 
including  tables,  chairs  (some  upholstered),  beds,  bureaus,  stands, 
desks  and  desk  sets,  hall  clock,  etc. 

The  boys  pounded  putty  into  the  holes  in  the  old  floors,  and 
rubbed  them  with  sand,  and  stained  and  varnished  all  the  woodwork. 
The  boys  also  made  24  stepladders  to  be  used  by  the  public-school 
janitors. 


168  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

The  girls  made  caps  and  aprons,  and  the  linen  articles  commonly 
used  in  dining-room,  kitchen  and  bedroom.  The  girls  also  do  the 
washing  and  ironing,  sweeping,  dusting,  cooking  and  cleaning,  and 
make  jellies,  preserves  and  soap. 

The  courses  in  design  and  English  are  intimately  associated  with 
the  handwork  of  the  pupils. 

5.  In  New  York  city  manual  training  centers  in  elementary 
schools  were  opened  during  the  year  1909-10,  after  regular  school 
hours,  from  three  to  five  o'clock  afternoons,  and  on  Saturday  morn- 
ings, especially  for  pupils  twelve  to  fourteen  years  of  age  who  cared 
to  come,  but  also  for  others. 

2.     Grammar  Schools  and  Optional  Courses  —  Abandoning 
Regular  Graduation 

1.  In  Cleveland,  Ohio,  an  elementary  industrial  school  was 
opened  in  September,  1909,  for  boys  and  girls  who  are  at  least  two 
years  behind  grade,  and  who  have  either  completed  the  sixth  grade 
or  have  failed  to  be  promoted  from  the  sixth  grade.  The  average 
age  of  pupils  is  14.2  years,  and  most  of  them  are  either  foreign  born 
or  have  foreign-born  parents. 

The  school  is  in  session  six  hours  a  day  and  gives  about  half  of 
the  time  to  English,  arithmetic,  and  geography-history,  and  half  to 
shopwork  and  drawing.  All  classes  are  segregated,  and  no  attempt 
is  made  to  give  the  same  subject  matter  to  girls  that  is  given  to  boys. 
The  course  is  two  years  in  length  with  a  year  or  two  for  specialized 
work  to  be  added  if  the  need  arises.  No  attempt  is  made  to  provide 
regular  graduation  from  the  elementary  school  in  the  usual  time. 

The  boys  have  shopwork  in  wood  and  sheet  metal,  mechanical 
and  free-hand  drawing,  and  design.  The  girls  have  cooking  and 
household  art,  machine  and  hand  sewing,  garmentmaking,  mechan- 
ical and  free-hand  drawing,  and  design.  The  practical  work  for 
girls  includes  plain  cooking,  serving  of  meals,  infant  feeding,  invalid 
cookery  and  preparation  of  the  tray,  care  of  kitchen  and  dining- 
room,  house  sanitation,  laundrywork,  home  nursing,  household 
accounts,  and  visits  to  markets  and  house-furnishing  shops.  In  sew- 
ing, it  is  planned  to  include  order  work  from  institutions  and  from 
individuals. 

Especially  interesting  work  is  done  in  this  school  in  simplifying 
the  conventional  academic  subjects  of  the  elementary  curriculum 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  169 

and  in  relating  all  that  is  offered  very  closely  to  the  shopwork  and 
to  the  industries.  A  detailed  outline  of  the  course  in  geography- 
history  is  given  on  pages  224-226  of  this  report. 

The  holding  power  of  the  school  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  prac- 
tically none  of  the  pupils  have  left3  although  many  have  reached  the 
legal  limit  of  fourteen  years.4 

Comparison  of  the  academic  work  done  by  the  pupils  in  May, 
1910,  with  that  done  in  October,  1910,  shows  remarkable  progress 
in  these  subjects.  Teachers  testify  that  the  interest  of  the  pupils  in 
the  modified  schoolwork,  and  their  confidence  in  themselves,  are 
developing  beyond  their  expectations. 

2.  In  Boston  a  boys'  vocational  class  of  20  pupils  from  the 
upper  grades  of  one  public  school  building  is  conducted  by  the  North 
Bennett  Street  Industrial  School  (a  social  settlement  school)  in 
cooperation  with  the  public  school  authorities.  For  admission  to 
this  class  pupils  must  be  at  least  thirteen  years  of  age  and  must  have 
reached  the  fifth  grade. 

A  little  less  than  half  of  the  school  time  is  given  in  the  first  year 
to  woodwork,  printing  and  drawing,  and  the  remainder  to  closely 
related  academic  work. 

A  two-year  course  in  general  vocational  training  is  planned,  with 
the  possible  addition  of  a  third  year  of  more  specialized  and  inten- 
sive trade  training,  with  a  six  or  even  eight  hour  day.  Work  in 
metal  is  to  be  included  in  the  shopwork  for  the  second  year. 

The  following  outline  of  first-year  work  was  given  for  the  first 
time  in  1909-10 : 

Hours 
per  Week 

Shopwork  —  wood    6 

printing . . 2 

Mechanical  and  freehand  drawing 2 

Practical  mathematics  3^4 

English   V/i 

Spelling    1% 

Geography  —  history    WA 

Reading  —  hygiene   2}4 

Recess  and  general  exercises 2l/> 

Total    25 

3  Up  to  May,  1910. 

4  Statement  of  the  Superintendent  of  Schools. 


170  REPORT  OK  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

3.  In  two  public  elementary  schools  of  Boston  10  hours  a  week 
are  given  to  optional  industrial  courses  in  wood  and  elementary 
metal  work.  Because  of  the  amount  of  time  per  week  given  to  the 
work,  pupils  in  these  classes  have  little  or  no  chance  of  being  gradu- 
ated in  the  usual  time  from  the  elementary  school. 

Among  the  objects  made  by  the  class  in  woodworking  are  140 
blackboard  rulers,  metal  handles  being  made  by  the  class  in  metal- 
working,  and  50  kindergarten  chairs. 

In  the  class  in  elementary  metalwork  three  of  the  10  hours  per 
week  are  given  to  drawing.  Following  is  a  detailed  statement  of 
work  done  by  the  40  pupils  in  this  class : 

Equipment  of  shop  for  benchwork  in  metal,  making  over  old  benches 
and  installing  simple  tools,  putting  up  shelves,  etc. 

General  repairs  in  five  school  buildings  in  the  district 

200  cast-iron  backs  for  high-school  chairs,  cleaned,  drilled,  fitted  and 
painted 

18  boards,  some  brass-bound,  and  6  clamps,  brass  or  iron  bound,  for 
bookbinding  class 

140  metal  handles  for  blackboard  rulers,  the  wood  portion  being  made 
by  the  class  in  woodworking 

75  card  receivers  for  high-school  laboratory 

300  checks  for  toolroom  use 

200  drawing  needles  for  sixth-grade  rooms 

90  desk  wrenches 

90  sets  adjustable  side  desk  castings 

Simple  templets  made.  Grinding  tools  for  shop ;  also  hatchets,  knives 
and  scissors  for  home  use 


3.     Preparatory  Trade  Schools 

1.  The  Factory  School,  Rochester,  New  York,5  was  the  first 
industrial  school  in  the  State  of  New  York  to  be  conducted  by  local 
public  school  authorities  under  subsidy  of  the  State.  It  was  opened 
December  1,  1908,  and  offers  a  two-year  course  in  preparatory  trade 
training  to  boys  who  are  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age  and  who  have 
finished  the  sixth  grade. 

The  school  is  in  session  forty  weeks  in  the  year,  6  hours  a  day  for 
five  days  in  the  week.     Two-thirds  of  the  school  time  is  given  to 

E  The  statement  of  per  capita  cost,  and  list  of  products,  and  the  description  of  equip- 
ment, are  taken  from  a  report  furnished  by  the  Director  of  Industrial  Training. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  171 

shop  and  drawing,  and  one-third  to  academic  subjects,  as  shown  in 
the  following: 

Hours  per 
Week 

Shopwork    15 

Drawing 5 

Shop  mathematics 5 

English  2V2 

Spelling  and  industrial  history V/z 

There  were  104  boys  in  the  school  in  May,  1910,  26  each  in  the 
departments  of  cabinetmaking,  carpentry,  electricity,  and  plumbing. 
There  was  also  a  waiting  list  of  over  a  hundred  boys.  The  faculty 
consists  of  a  principal  and  six  teachers. 

The  cost  of  the  school  from  December  1,  1908,  to  January  1, 
1910,  including  the  summer  session,  and  not  counting  the  State  aid, 
was  $61.64  per  capita.  Reduced  to  the  basis  of  a  ten-months'  ses- 
sion this  gives  a  per  capita  cost  of  $56.39.  In  figuring  this  cost,  the 
following  items  only  are  included :  salaries,  material,  drawing  sup- 
plies, repairs,  and  a  sinking  fund  of  ten  per  cent  of  the  equipment. 
The  sum  of  $2,939.64,  representing  the  value  of  the  products  made 
and  the  repair  work  done  by  the  pupils  for  the  Board  of  Education, 
was  subtracted  from  the  total  cost  of  the  school,  $9,104.02,  in  arriv- 
ing at  the  above  per  capita  cost. 

Cabinetmaking  Department 

This  department  is  a  complete  little  factory,  with  its  gluing  room,  machine 
room,  assembly  room  and  finishing  room 

The  equipment  of  the  various  rooms  is  given  below : 

Machine  room  (cost,  $1,700) 

Cut-off  saw,  2  universal  saw  tables,  band  saw,  planer,  jointer,  horizontal 
borer,  belt  sander,  grindstone,  motors 

Gluing  room  (cost,  $250) 

Glue  heater,  warming  coil,  glue  rack,  cabinetmakers'  benches,  clamps  and 
hand  screws 

Assembly  room  (cost,  $200) 

Cabinetmakers'  benches,  equipment  of  special  tools,  low  assembly  tables 

Finishing  room  (cost,  $50) 
2  cabinetmakers'  benches 
Low  tables  for  lockfitting,  etc. 
Stain  tables 
Stain  jars,  brushes,  etc. 


172  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

In  this  department  there  is  division  of  labor,  the  boys  being  promoted 
from  one  branch  of  the  work  to  another  as  soon  as  a  reasonable  degree  of 
efficiency  has  been  acquired. 

The  following  articles  have  been  made : 
200  bookcases  25  drawing  tables 

18  kindergarten  tables  62  sawhorses 

32  sand  boxes  25  bench  rests 

25  drawing  boards  15  miscellaneous  articles 

12  sewing  boxes  200  looms 

100  toy  knitters  700  panels 

Following  is  a  list  of  articles  now  being  manufactured: 

25  large  drawing  boards  36  manual  training  benches 

100  primary  looms  12  umbrella  racks 

25  pillow  looms,  with  heddles  50  bookcases,  two  designs,  at  $10 

100  drawing  kits  120  desk  chairs 

25  sawhorses  20  sanitary  teachers'  desks 

50  sewing  boxes  12  music  cabinets 

Any  article  to  be  included  in  the  "  line  "  of  products  must  meet  two  con- 
ditions:  (1)  it  must  be  something  needed  in  the  schools  and  which  the  Board 
of  Education  would  otherwise  purchase;  (2)  it  must  have  educative  value  for 
the  pupil.  Many  needed  articles  are  rejected  because  the  making  of  them 
would  teach  the  boys  little  or  nothing.  The  instructor  of  the  department 
personally  directs  the  work  of  the  machine  room  and  supervises  the  work  of 
the  other  rooms  largely  through  boy  foremen. 

Electrical  Department 

The  electrical  department  aims  to  give  to  pupils  a  thorough  course  in 
sheet-metal  work,  in  all  branches  of  bell,  telephone  and  light  wiring,  and  the 
installation,  operation  and  repair  of  A.  C.  and  D.  C.  machines  of  all  kind. 

The  equipment  at  present  includes  20  benches,  a  telephone  switchboard, 
D.  C.  and  A.  C.  motors  and  generators.    Cost,  about  $700. 

Sixty-three  jobs  of  electrical  work  were  done  in  various  school  buildings 
of  the  city.  Typical  examples  of  this  work  were  the  replacing  of  a  telephone, 
installing  a  buzzer,  repairing  gongs,  installing  lights,  repairing  fire  alarms, 
installing  spotlights,  and  repairing  stereopticon. 

Plumbing  Department 
The  shop  work  in  plumbing  includes  tap  and  die  work,  joint  wiping,  the 
setting  of  all  kinds  of  fixtures,  gasfitting,  and  heating  and  ventilating.     The 
cost  of  the  equipment  is  about  $300. 

Carpentry  Department 

The  carpentry  course  covers  all  branches  of  framing  and  interior  finish- 
ing, including  stair  building. 

The  cost  of  the  benches  and  tools  for  this  department  would  not  exceed 
$200. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  173 

Supplemental  Construction  and  Repair  Work 

A  most  valuable  supplement  to  the  shopwork  of  the  school  is  the  con- 
structional and  repair  work  performed  by  the  boys  in  the  various  school 
buildings  of  the  city.  Daily  calls  come  to  the  Factory  School  from  the  gram- 
mar schools  of  the  city  for  all  manner  of  repair  and  installation  work.  In 
the  afternoon  groups  of  boys  are  sent  out  to  measure  up  spaces,  make 
sketches  of  work  desired,  or  locate  trouble  if  apparatus  is  out  of  order.  The 
next  day  these  boys  make  drawings  of  the  work  to  be  done  and  bills  of  mate- 
rial needed.  A  few  days  later,  under  an  instructor  or  a  boy  foreman,  they 
return  to  the  school  and  complete  the  work. 

The  following  are  examples  of  repair  work  done : 

In  electrical  work  :  repairing  lights,  telephones,  fire  gongs,  motor ;  install- 
ing 5  horse-power  motor  and  stereopticon  lantern. 

In  plumbing:  repairing  closet  tank,  automatic  tilting  tank,  broken  water 
pipes,  leak  in  flush  pipe,  sanitary  drinking  fountain,  basin  cocks ;  connecting 
gas  plate,  installing  basin  bowl,  removing  stoppage  in  basin  waste. 

In  carpentry :  building  partitions  in  cellar,  teachers'  lockers,  supply  cup- 
boards, porch,  stormhouse ;    laying  floors,  moving  of  portable  school  building. 

The  holding  power  of  the  school  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  of  the 
boys  in  school  in  June,  1910,  67  per  cent  returned  in  the  autumn, 
notwithstanding  the  fact  that  nearly  all  were  entitled  to  a  work 
permit. 

2.  The  Vocational  School  for  boys  and  girls,  at  Albany,  New 
York,  offers  a  four-year  course,  requiring  6  hours  a  day  for  5  days 
in  the  week,  one-half  time  being  given  to  shop  and  drawing,  and  the 
remainder  to  closely  related  academic  work.  There  were  100  pupils 
in  the  school,  and  300  on  the  waiting  list,  in  May,  1910.  Most  of 
the  pupils  enter  from  grades  6  and  7,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen ; 
some  enter  at  thirteen  years  of  age.  The  school  was  started  in 
April,  1909. 

Graduates  of  the  school  obtain  credit  in  the  apprenticeship  sys- 
tem of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  Company,  at  West  Albany, 
New  York,  and  in  that  of  the  General  Electric  Company,  at  Schenec- 
tady, New  York. 

In  the  home-making  department  a  dining-room,  bedroom,  laun- 
dry, kitchen  and  living-room  are  provided.  The  girls  prepare,  serve, 
and  manage  the  finances  of  the  noon-day  luncheon  for  the  school, 
which  is  furnished  to  the  students  at  cost.  Pies,  bread,  etc.,  are 
also  made  by  the  girls  and  sold  to  private  families.  In  the  sewing 
work  uniforms  are  made  for  the  cooking  class,  overalls  for  the  boys 


174  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

of  the  shop,  curtains  and  various  linen  articles  for  the  dining-room, 
bedroom,  etc.,  and  a  number  of  flags  for  the  city  schools. 

In  the  woodwork  some  of  the  boys  make  articles  to  sell  to  friends 
and  neighbors,  being  paid  a  certain  rate  per  hour  for  the  work.  The 
following  is  a  typical  list  of  other  objects  made  in  the  wood  shops : 

For  the  Board  of  Education : 
100  bookcases  100  plant  boxes 

100  sand  tables  50  wooden  guns  for  military  drill 

For  the  student's  own  use : 
Incubators  Screens 

Brooders  Clothes  boxes 

The  holding  power  of  the  school  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  of 
the  44  students  promoted  from  second-year  work  in  June,  1910,  50 
per  cent  returned  for  third-year  work,  regardless  of  the  fact  that  no 
provision  was  made  for  their  advanced  training.  These  students 
petitioned  the  Board  of  Education  for  advanced  training  and  were 
advised  to  enter  the  general  high  school  or  to  repeat  the  second 
year's  work  in  the  vocational  school.  About  half  returned  to  the 
vocational  school  and  only  one  of  these  had  dropped  out  by  January, 
1911 ;   some  entered  the  high  school  temporarily. 

Following  is  the  curriculum  for  the  four  years : 

Present  Course  of  Study 

Giving  better  elementary  school  provision  for  the  vocational  needs  of 
those  likely  to  enter  industrial  pursuits. 

First  Year 
Corresponding  to  grade  7  of  the  elementary  school 

Minutes  per 
Boys:  Week 

Shopwork  —  joinery  and  elements  of  woodworking 600 

Drawing  —  freehand  and  mechanical 300 

Practical  mathematics    225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Geography    225 

Opening  exercises,  music,  physiology  and  study 225 

1,800 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  175 

Minutes  per 
Girls:  Week 

Sewing  —  hand  and  machine,  simple  garmentmaking 225 

Plain  cooking  and  general  housekeeping 450 

Design  225 

Practical  mathematics    225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Geography    225 

Opening  exercises,  music,  physiology  and  study 225 

1,800 

Second  Year 
Corresponding  to  grade  8  of  the  elementary  school 

Minutes  per 
Boys:  Week 

Shopwork  —  cabinetmaking  and  wood  turning 600 

Drawing  —  freehand  and  mechanical 300 

Practical  mathematics    225 

English  literature   and   composition 225 

History  and  civics 225 

Opening  exercises,  music,  hygiene  and  study 225 

1,800 


Minutes  per 
Gtrls:  Week 

Sewing  —  hand  and  machine,  garment  making,   embroidery, 

textiles    225 

Cooking  (plain,  fancy,  invalid),  housekeeping 450 

Design     225 

Practical  mathematics    225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

History  and  civics 225 

Opening  exercises,  music,  hygiene  and  study 225 

1,800 


176  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAIXIXG 


Proposed  Course  of  Study 

Allowing  for  special  shop,  laboratory  and  drawing-room  practice  along 
a  chosen  trade  pursuit  and  thus  making  provision  for  the  industrial  interests 
which  have  been  aroused  in  the  two  preceding  years. 


Third  Year 

Minutes  per 
Boys:  Week 

Special  shop  practice  in  patternmaking  and  foundry  practice, 

or  iron  work,  or  electrical  wiring  and  installation 600 

Drawing  —  mechanical     300 

Applied  algebra  and  geometry 225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Mechanics    and    electricity 225 

Industrial   history    150 

Opening  exercises  and  unassigned 75 


1,800 


Minutes  per 
Gills:  Week 

Special    work    in    millinery,    or    dressmaking,    or    domestic 

science   600 

Design    300 

Applied  mathematics    225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Practical  physics  relating  to  home 225 

Industrial   history    150 

Opening  exercises  and  unassigned 75 


1,800 
Fourth  Year 

Minutes  per 
Boys:  Week 

Special  shop  practice  in  patternmaking  and  foundry  practice, 

or  ironwork,  or  electrical  construction 600 

Drawing  —  mechanical    300 

Applied  algebra  and  geometry 225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Chemistry  relating  to  industry 225 

Economics  and  industrial  conditions 150 

Opening  exercises  and  unassigned 75 

1,800 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  177 

Minutes  per 
Girls:  Week 

Special    work    in    millinery,    or    dressmaking,    or    domestic 

science    600 

Design  300 

Applied  mathematics    225 

English  literature  and  composition 225 

Chemistry  relating  to  home  and  industry 225 

Economics  and  industrial  conditions 150 

Opening  exercises  and  unassigned 75 

1,800 

3.  A  four-year  course  in  vocational  and  trade  training,  similar 
in  general  organization  to  the  course  in  the  Albany  Vocational 
School,  is  in  operation  in  the  Vocational  and  Trade  Schools  of  Yon- 
kers,  New  York.8 

At  this  school  vocational  and  trade  courses  in  machine  shop  and 
forge  rooms  are  given  in  addition  to  courses  in  printing,  cement  con- 
struction, pottery,  shoe  repairing  and  the  usual  woodworking 
courses,  for  the  boys,  and  courses  in  dressmaking,  millinery  and 
homemaking  for  the  girls. 

The  school  has  an  endowment  of  nearly  half  a  million  dollars, 
but  is  an  integral  part  of  the  public  school  system,  and  is  subsidized 
by  the  State.  The  trade  school  was  started  in  October,  1909,  with 
35  boys ;  the  vocational  school  for  girls,  in  January,  1910,  with  34 
pupils,  and  the  vocational  school  for  boys,  in  April,  1910,  with  52 
pupils.    The  equipment  for  the  trade  school  alone  cost  about  $15,000. 

4.  Other  vocational  schools  for  boys,  under  subsidy  of  the  State 
of  New  York,  and  similar  in  a  general  way  to  those  at  Rochester, 
Albany  and  Yonkers,  are  located  at  Buffalo  and  New  York  city.  The 
one  in  New  York  city,  School  No.  100,  has  a  very  complete  equip- 
ment for  machine,  forge,  plumbing  and  electrical  work,  as  well  as 
for  the  usual  woodworking  trades. 

5.  The  Independent  Industrial  School,  Newton,  Massachusetts, 
offers  a  three-year  course  in  woodwork,  machinework,  electricity, 
printing  and  sheet-metal  work.  For  admission,  pupils  must  be  at 
least  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  must  have  reached  the  sixth  grade 
(nine-year  system).    The  average  age  at  entrance  is  fifteen  years. 

9  This  school  was  not  visited  by  the  committee's  representative.  The  description  given 
was  obtained  by  letter  from  the  director. 

13 


178 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


The  school  is  in  session  6J/2  hours  a  day,  5  days  a  week,  and  11 
months  in  the  year.  About  two-thirds  of  the  time  is  given  to  shop 
and  drawing.  In  the  last  year  and  a  half  of  the  course  pupils  are 
expected  to  specialize  in  some  particular  trade.  Pupils  may  go  from 
this  school  to  certain  technical  courses  in  the  high  school.7 

The  school  was  started  in  the  autumn,  1908,  and  is  supported 
partly  by  State  aid  and  partly  by  contributions  from  a  private  citizen. 
There  are  45  pupils  in  the  school,  and  three  teachers.  The  per  capita 
cost  is  about  $100. 

Nearly  all  the  shopwork  at  present  consists  in  the  construction  of 
such  school  equipment  as  it  is  possible  for  boys  to  make.  Following 
is  a  statement  of  shopwork  done  from  September,  1909,  to  June, 
1910: 

Work  done  for  the  Industrial  School 

4  sawhorses 

11  drawing  tables 
20  boxes  for  electricity  class 

1  filing  cabinet  for  office 

12  desks  and  seats  refinished 
3  boxes  for  drawing-room 
7  stools  for  electricity  class 
3  sandpaper  boxes 

18  ink-bottle  stands 
12  nail  boxes 
5  waste-baskets 

40  feet  of  vise  benches  for  machine 
shop 
1  motor  shelf  and  bracket 
Erection     of     timbers,     shafting, 
etc.,  in  machine  shop 


1  blue-print  frame 
1  oilstone  shelf 
1  rack  for  bits 
40  file  handles 
12  chisel  handles 
18  switch  bases 
18  bench  rammers 
18  rapping  mallets 
18  trowel  handles 
3  doz.  sprues 
Built  toolroom  cases,  etc.,  in  ma- 
chine shop 
Lumber    racks    in    woodworking 
room,  etc. 
3  stands  for  electrical  work 
5  stands  for  printing  equipment 


1  gas-forge  plate 
1  gas  forge 
1  motor  frame 
1  planer  jack 
1  lathe  attachment 
1  pulley  pattern 


2  filing  cabinets 
1  sand  table 
1  modeling  table 
300  paper  boxes 


Patterns  made 

1  gas-engine  valve 

saw  gauge,  4  patterns 
1  shifter  guide  for  band  saw 
3  surface  plates 
1  fly-wheel  pattern 
1  piston  pattern 

Work  done  for  other  schools 
1  aquarium 
180  boards  for  clay  modeling 
5  taborets  for  kindergarten 
1  set  of  blocks  for  kindergarten 


7  For  a  complete  outline  of  Newton  school  system,  see  p.  134. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  179 

6.  A  preparatory  trades  school  in  Columbus,  Ohio,  for  boys  who 
are  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  who  have  finished  the  sixth 
grade,  was  opened  in  November,  1909.  About  two-thirds  of  the 
time  is  given  to  drawing  and  shopwork  in  printing  and  the  wood- 
working trades.  Courses  in  machine  and  electrical  work  will  prob- 
ably be  added  soon.  The  products  of  the  shops  are  largely  for  school 
use  and  equipment.  There  were  64  students  in  April,  1910.  The 
per  capita  cost  is  about  $100. 

7.  The  Hebrew  Technical  Institute8  for  boys,  New  York  city, 
is  a  private  institution,  established  in  1884,  and  offers  a  three-year 
technical  course,  including  shopwork  in  the  usual  woodworking 
lines,  and  in  machinework,  visework  on  metal,  practical  electricity 
and  related  academic  subjects.  About  half  of  the  time  is  given  to 
shop  and  drawing  the  first  and  second  years,  and  two-thirds  in  the 
third  year. 

For  admission,  pupils  must  be  at  least  thirteen  years  of  age  and 
must  have  completed  the  7B  grade.  The  average  age  on  admission 
is  nearly  fourteen  years.  Two  hundred  and  eighty  pupils  were 
enrolled  in  1909-10.    The  per  capita  cost  is  $115. 

A  very  complete  record  has  been  kept  of  the  occupations  and 
weekly  earnings  of  634  graduates  of  this  school.9 

8.  The  Industrial  School,  at  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts,  offers 
a  four-year  course  for  boys,  the  first  half  of  which  is  given  to  gen- 
eral vocational  training,  and  the  last  half  to  specialized  and  intensive 
trade  training.  For  admission,  the  minimum  age  is  fourteen  years, 
but  no  definite  academic  requirements  are  set.  The  average  age  on 
admission  is  15^  years. 

The  school  was  started  in  September,  1909,  and  operates  under 
subsidy  of  the  State,  which  pays  one-half  of  the  expense  of  mainte- 
nance. Sessions  are  63^  hours  a  day  for  5  days  in  the  week,  and 
3^2  hours  Saturday  morning.  Nearly  two-thirds  of  the  time  the 
first  two  years  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing.  There  were  65  pupils 
in  May,  1910.  The  per  capita  cost  is  about  $150,  not  counting  the 
State  aid. 

The  work  offered  for  the  first  two  years  is  as  follows.     The 

8  This  school  is  classified  in  this  section  largely  because  it  corresponds  in  admission 
requirements  more  closely  to  the  preparatory  trade  schools  than  to  the  technical  schools 
described  in  a  later  section. 

8  See  p.  236. 


180  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

numbers  indicate  the  number  of  periods  per  week  given  to  each 
subject: 

First  Year 

Mathematics  4 

English  4 

Shopwork,  wood  10 

Drawing    6 

Physical  science   6 

Shopwork,  metal 10 

Second  Year 

Mathematics  4 

English  4 

Drawing  6 

Shopwork,  wood 10 

Shopwork,  metal 10 

Industrial  history  3 

Civics  and  citizenship 3 

All  the  academic  work  is  very  closely  related  to  the  shopwork. 
Boys  work  in  both  wood  and  metal  shops  from  the  beginning.  Each 
year's  work  is  intended  to  be  a  unit  in  itself,  in  the  sense  that  noth- 
ing is  taught  in  any  one  year  solely  for  its  value  in  a  later  part  of 
the  course. 

The  shopwork  is  taken  up  almost  entirely  with  the  making  of 
the  equipment  needed  by  the  school.  The  work  in  wood  includes 
the  use  of  the  common  bench  tools,  lathe  work,  patternmaking,  etc. 
The  work  in  metal  includes  benchwork,  the  construction,  operation 
and  adjustment  of  the  common  machines,  and  the  elements  of  forg- 
ing. Some  of  the  methods  used  in  the  shopwork  and  in  relating  the 
academic  work  to  the  shopwork  are  described  on  page  214  of  this 
report. 

9.  The  Vocational  School,  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  for  boys 
who  are  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age  and  who  have  finished  the 
seventh  grade  (nine-year  system)  was  started  in  September,  1909. 
A  four-year  course  is  offered,  the  first  two  years  aiming  at  general 
vocational  training,  the  last  two  at  specialized  and  intensive  trade 
training. 

The  school  is  in  session  40  weeks  in  the  year,  6  hours  a  day  on 
5  days  of  the  week,  and  4  hours  Saturday  morning.  About  two- 
thirds  of  the  school  time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing.    The  school 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  181 

is  at  present10  using  for  its  shopwork  the  equipment  of  the  Spring- 
field Technical  High  School.  Fifty  students  were  enrolled  in  May, 
1910.    The  average  age  on  entrance  is  fifteen  years. 

A  one-story  house  for  the  use  of  high-school  girls  in  the  house- 
hold arts  course  is  to  be  built  and  furnished  completely  by  students 
in  the  Vocational  School  and  Technical  High  School. 

10.  The  Pre-apprentice  School  of  Printing  and  Bookbinding, 
Boston,  offers  at  present  a  two-year  course  in  printing  to  boys  from 
grades  7  and  8  of  one  school,  and  a  course  in  elementary  bookbinding 
to  boys  and  girls  from  the  sixth  grade  of  three  schools.  These  classes 
are  ultimately  to  be  formed  into  an  independent  school  in  printing 
and  bookbinding,  open  to  pupils  from  all  parts  of  the  city. 

In  printing,  the  school  sessions  are  35  hours  a  week,  about  half 
of  the  time  being  given  to  instruction  and  practice  in  printing  and 
related  drawing,  as  shown  by  the  following  schedule  of  studies : 

Mathematics  (5  hours  per  week) 

Fundamentals  of  arithmetic;  industrial  arithmetic;  simple  forms  of 
bookkeeping  and  accounting 

English  (7  hours  per  week) 

Compositions  on  business  topics  and  current  events ;  business  correspond- 
ence ;   oral  discussions 

Industrial  history  (3  hours  per  week) 

Growth  and  changes  in  industries ;  rise,  growth  and  importance  of  print- 
ing; industrial  progress;  organizations  of  capital  and  labor;  trades  unions 
and  their  relations  to  industrial  progress 

Current  events  (VA  hours  per  week) 

As  related  to  progress  in  industrial,  educational,  social  and  political  life 

Spelling  (\y2  hours  per  week) 

As  used  in  business  correspondence  and  in  industrial  and  social  life 

Printing  (15  hours  per  week) 

Simplest  kinds,  suited  to  beginners,  with  such  progress  in  subject  matter 
and  form  as  age  and  capabilities  of  students  permit 

Drawing  (2  hours  per  week) 

Form  study  and  design  especially  adapted  to  printing  and  bookbinding 

An  outline  of  the  instruction  given  in  the  history  of  printing  is 
given  on  page  221  of  this  report. 

10  May,  1910. 


182  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Four  hours  a  week  are  given  to  bookbinding.  The  work  in 
binding  in  1909-10  included  the  binding  of  1,000  small  notebooks, 
100  teachers'  manuals,  and  the  rebinding  of  500  dilapidated  books 
from  neighboring  school  libraries. 

During  the  first  year  of  the  school,  1909-10,  there  were  26  stu- 
dents enrolled  in  printing,  and  66  in  bookbinding. 


4.     Trade  Schools 
A.     Under  Public  Auspices 

1.  The  School  of  Trades  for  Boys,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin, 
offers  intensive  trade  courses,  two  years  in  length,  in  carpentry  and 
woodworking,  machinework  and  toolmaking,  and  patternmaking, 
and  a  one-year  course  in  plumbing  and  gasfitting.  The  school  was 
originally  conducted  by  an  association  of  manufacturers,  but  was 
taken  into  the  public-school  system  July  1,  1907,  and  is  now  sup- 
ported by  a  special  municipal  tax,  not  exceeding  one-half  mill,  in 
accordance  with  an  act  of  the  State  legislature. 

For  admission,  students  must  be  at  least  sixteen  years  of  age 
and  must  pass  an  examination  in  the  elements  of  arithmetic  and 
English,  unless  they  are  graduates  of  the  eighth  grade.  Tuition  is 
free  to  residents  of  Milwaukee  between  the  ages  of  sixteen  and 
twenty.  Residents  over  twenty  years  of  age  pay  $5  a  month ;  non- 
residents pay  $15  a  month.  Students  receiving  free  tuition  pay  $1  a 
month  for  material  used.  The  average  attendance  in  the  day  school 
in  February,  1910,  was  69  students.  The  per  capita  cost  is  over 
$300. 

The  school  is  in  session  50  weeks  in  the  year,  8  hours  a  day  for 
5  days  in  the  week,  and  4  hours  Saturday  morning.  About  three- 
fourths  of  the  time  is  given  to  actual  shop  practice,  and  the  remain- 
ing time  to  drawing,  shop  mathematics  and  some  incidental  English. 
The  drawing  and  mathematics  are  closely  adapted  to  the  trade  needs, 
each  trade  being  provided  with  special  material  for  study  in  these 
subjects. 

The  shop  products  have  thus  far  been  mainly  used  for  equip- 
ment, but  action  was  recently  taken  by  the  Board  of  Education 
authorizing  the  sale  of  products  on  the  open  market  at  current  prices. 
All  the  carpenter  work  and  plumbing  required  in  the  remodeling 
of  a  factory  building  purchased  for  the  use  of  the  school  has  been 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  183 

done  by  students.  The  repairing,  overhauling  and  reinstalling  of  the 
machine-shop  equipment,  partially  destroyed  by  a  recent  fire,  has 
also  been  done  by  students.  For  this  work  students  were  paid  by  the 
school  at  a  rate  per  hour  determined  by  their  proficiency. 

Because  the  School  of  Trades  for  Boys  does  not  admit  students 
under  sixteen  years  of  age,  the  school  authorities  are  attempting  to 
bridge  the  gap  between  fourteen  and  sixteen  years  by  offering  in 
the  first  two  years  of  the  high  school  industrial  courses  preparatory 
to  the  School  of  Trades.  These  courses  include  applied  English, 
algebra,  geometry,  elementary  science,  business  arithmetic,  bookkeep- 
ing, and  drawing,  shopwork  and  visits  to  factories. 

2.  The  Trade  School  at  Worcester,  Massachusetts,  was  started 
about  February  1,  1910,  with  an  equipment  costing  $30,000.  The 
building,  together  with  the  lot  on  which  it  stands,  cost  $90,000. 
Four-year  courses  are  offered  in  cabinetmaking  and  patternmaking 
and  machinework.  Plans  are  also  under  consideration  to  offer 
courses  in  bricklaying  and  other  building  trades. 

The  school  year  is  divided  into  4  terms  of  12  weeks  each,  with 
a  vacation  of  4  weeks  in  August.  New  classes  are  formed  each 
term.  Eight  hours  a  day  are  required,  5  days  a  week,  and  4  hours 
Saturday  morning  for  review  work  and  to  make  up  deficiencies. 
Students  work  in  the  school  shops  one  week,  and  the  following  week 
in  academic  subjects  and  drawing. 

The  plan  of  spending  one  week  in  shopwork  and  the  next  in 
academic  subjects  and  drawing  enables  the  school  to  offer  half-time 
classes  in  the  academic  subjects  to  boys  at  work  who  can  arrange 
with  their  employers  to  absent  themselves  from  work  in  alternate 
weeks.  Three  such  pupils  were  enrolled  in  these  classes  in  Decem- 
ber, 1910. 

Day  continuation  classes  are  also  offered  to  boys  at  work  who 
can  arrange  with  their  employers  to  attend  one-half  day  a  week. 
Fifty-eight  pupils  were  enrolled  in  day  continuation  classes  in  Decem- 
ber, 1910.  The  subjects  taught  in  these  classes  are  shop  mathe- 
matics, English,  drawing  and  shop  instruction.  The  latter  subject 
includes  the  study  of  gearing,  belting,  tapers,  cutting  speeds,  con- 
struction of  machine  tools,  methods  of  doing  machinework,  etc. 

The  minimum  age  for  admission  is  fourteen  years.  The  average 
age  on  admission  was  sixteen  years  one  month  for  the  first  class 
admitted,  and  fifteen  years  eight  months  for  the  second.  One  hun- 
dred and  thirteen  students  were  in  attendance  in  December.  1910. 


184 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


The  building  has  a  capacity  for  300  students.  Graduates  of  the 
grammar  school  are  admitted  without  examination ;  others  must 
submit  to  examination. 

The  school  is  supported  by  the  municipality  and  by  a  State  sub- 
sidy of  one-half  the  cost  of  maintenance.  Tuition  is  free  to  residents 
of  Worcester ;  non-residents  pay  tuition  as  fixed  by  the  State  Board 
of  Education.  The  per  capita  cost  is  estimated  by  the  manager  to  be 
between  $125  and  $150. 

All  academic  work  is  closely  related  to  the  shopwork  and  to 
industrial  needs.  The  following  figure11  gives  the  complete  curricu- 
lum for  the  16  terms  of  the  four-year  course,  showing  the  point  at 
which  each  subject  is  begun,  and  the  number  of  weeks  and  hours 
per  week  allotted  to  each  subject. 


DIVISION     Of     WOR.K. 


WORCEI5TER     TIXA.DE        S^KI 


The  value  of  shop  products,  made  in  the  three  months  preceding 
May,  1910,  was  about  $1,200.  Of  this  sum,  $700  represents  the  value 
of  products  made  by  50  boys  in  about  three  months'  time  and  actually 
sold.  The  value  of  the  products  sold  is  on  the  basis  of  $57  per  boy 
for  one  year.  The  remaining  $500  was  the  value  of  products  made 
for  school  equipment.  The  total  value  of  school  equipment  made  by 
students  up  to  December  1,  1910,  was  $1,634.50.    The  school  hopes 

11  Taken  from  the  Report  of  the  Trustees,  November  30,  1910. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  185 

later  to  be  able  to  pay  students  for  work  done  on  products  that  are 
sold. 

A  typical  list  of  products  made  and  sold  by  the  school  is  here 
appended. 

100  drill  bases  planed 
1,700  drill  blanks  turned 

Cutting  several  hundred  gears 
300  bronze  bushings 

120  binder  pulley  shafts  turned  and  ground 
100  reverse  clutches,  bored  and  turned 
50  to  75  lathe  tool  posts,  complete 

Several  hundred  grinder  spindles,  complete 
25  sets  change  gears,  12-inch  lathes,  complete 
12  11-inch  engine  lathes,  complete 
120  heavy  forged  screws 

3.  The  Philadelphia  Trades  School,  opened  in  1906,  is  supported 
by  public  funds,  and  offers  day  courses,  three  years  in  length,  in 
carpentry,  patternmaking,  printing,  electrical  construction,  plumb- 
ing and  architectural  and  mechanical  drawing.  About  fifty  per  cent 
of  the  school  time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing.  The  academic 
instruction  includes  mensuration  and  algebra,  plane  and  solid  geom- 
etry, trigonometry,  physics,  chemistry,  industrial  history,  English 
and  American  literature,  rhetoric,  economics  and  commercial  law. 
Correlation  of  the  academic  instruction  with  shop  and  industrial 
needs  is  not  made  in  the  academic  classroom,  but  is  attempted  in  shop 
sessions  when  the  need  arises.    The  shop  products  are  not  sold. 

The  school  is  open  to  graduates  of  the  grammar  school,  but 
others  who  are  at  least  fifteen  years  of  age  may  be  admitted.  The 
average  membership  in  1909-10  was  about  220  in  the  day  classes. 
The  first  graduating  class,  in  June,  1909,  numbered  24.  Within  one 
year  from  graduation  these  24  pupils  were  earning  an  average  of 
$9.50  per  week. 

4.  A  Trade  School  for  Machinists,  Saginaw,  Michigan,12  was 
opened  in  January,  1910,  with  28  students  over  fifteen  years  of  age. 
The  school  is  administered  by  the  public  school  authorities,  but  is 
supported  in  part  by  a  private  contribution  of  $2,000  for  the  first 
year's  work.  The  present  course  of  study  is  three  years  in  length, 
about  three-fifths  of  the  time  being  given  to  shop  and  drawing.  The 
school  day  is  hl/2  hours  in  length. 

12  This  school  was  not  visited  by  the  committee's  representative.  The  description  given 
is  based  on  a  circular  issued  by  the  Superintendent  of  Schools. 


186  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

5.  The  Manhattan  Trade  School  for  Girls,  New  York  city,  was 
conducted  under  private  ownership  from  1902  to  September  12, 
1910,  when  it  was  opened  under  the  auspices  of  the  public  school 
system  of  New  York  city.  While  under  private  control  it  was  sup- 
ported by  voluntary  contributions.  The  description  here  given  refers 
to  its  work  under  private  control. 

The  school  aims  to  prepare  the  youngest  and  poorest  of  women 
workers  to  be  self-supporting  in  the  shortest  possible  time.  Girls 
are,  therefore,  admitted  as  soon  as  they  can  satisfy  the  requirements 
of  the  Child  Labor  Law  of  the  State:  namely,  a  minimum  age  of 
fourteen,  and  the  completion  of  grade  5A  of  the  public  schools  or 
its  equivalent.  Sixty-five  per  cent  of  the  pupils  came  from  grades 
below  the  eighth  in  the  year  1908. 

The  trades  taught13  are  dressmaking,  millinery,  power-machine 
operating  on  clothing  and  straw  hats,  novelty  work  and  trade  art. 
The  novelty  work  includes  the  use  of  paste  and  glue  in  sample 
mounting,  sample-book  covers,  labelling,  tissue-paper  novelties  and 
decorations,  the  covering  and  lining  of  cases  and  boxes,  jewelry  and 
silverware  casemaking,  lamp  and  candle  shade  making.  The  work 
in  trade  art  includes  costume  sketching,  stamping  and  perforating. 
Drawing  is  closely  related  to  all  trade  work.  Students  are  urged  to 
learn  several  lines  of  work  so  that  during  dull  seasons  in  one  trade 
other  work  may  be  open.  Practically  all  of  the  shopwork  is  on 
actual  commercial  products  which  are  sold  to  individuals  and  firms 
at  market  prices.  The  value  of  the  products  sold  in  the  eighteen 
months  from  January  1,  1908,  to  January  1,  1909,  was  about  $24,000. 

The  school  is  in  session  48  weeks  in  the  year,  5  days  a  week,  7 
hours  a  day.  About  one-fifth  of  the  time  is  given  to  academic 
instruction,  including  business  arithmetic,14  business  English,  indus- 
tries and  textiles,  civics,  ethics  of  trade,  and  cost  of  living.  Fifteen 
minutes  daily  are  given  to  vigorous  physical  exercises  to  furnish 
relaxation. 

A  six-weeks'  course  in  simple  cooking  in  connection  with  the 
noon  luncheon  is  given  to  twenty  girls  at  a  time  who  work  in  groups 
of  ten  each. 

One  year  is  required  in  most  cases  for  the  completion  of  a  trade 
course.     A  second  year  is  offered  for  advanced  work.     Certificates 

13  Detailed  outlines  of  department  work  are  given  in  the  September,  1909,  issue  of 
Teachers'  College  Record. 

11  A  book  of  problems  in  arithmetic,  developed  at  this  school,  is  described  on  p.  217  of 
this  report. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  187 

to  those  who  have  completed  a  course  are  given  only  after  satis- 
factory evidence  is  presented  of  successful  work  for  at  least  three 
months  in  commercial  shops.  In  1909,  89  certificates  were  given. 
Tuition  is  free  and  financial  aid  is  given  to  needy  students. 

The  budget  for  the  year  1908-9  was  $49,000,  including  salaries, 
supplies,  printing  and  maintenance.  In  that  year  943  girls  were 
enrolled.  In  May,  1910,  there  were  about  270  girls  in  attendance. 
In  the  power-machine  department  there  are  55  plain  electric  machines 
and  30  special  machines  for  hemstitching,  embroidery,  etc. 

A  Placement  Secretary  is  employed  by  the  school  to  secure  posi- 
tions for  the  girls,  and  to  study  conditions  in  the  industries,  so  that 
the  work  of  the  school  may  be  kept  in  touch  with  the  needs  of 
employers.  In  1909,  90  girls  were  placed  in  positions  in  six  months. 
The  wages  of  former  students  in  this  school  and  in  the  Boston  Trade 
School  for  Girls  are  shown  in  Fig.  7,  page  233. 

6.  The  Trade  School  for  Girls,  Boston,  Massachusetts,  was 
conducted  under  private  auspices  from  1904  to  September  15,  1909, 
when  it  was  taken  into  the  public  school  system.  While  under 
private  control  it  was  supported  by  voluntary  contributions.  It  is 
now  supported  by  city  taxation  and  by  subsidy  from  the  State,  which 
pays  one-half  the  cost  of  maintenance. 

The  school  is  much  the  same  as  the  Manhattan  Trade  School  in 
the  general  aim  and  character  of  the  work.  In  the  Boston  school 
pupils  are  admitted  between  fourteen  and  eighteen  years  of  age,  but 
no  definite  academic  requirements  are  set.  The  actual  academic 
status,  however,  of  entering  students,  has  been  higher  for  the 
Boston  School  than  for  the  New  York  School,  about  34  per  cent  of 
the  students  entering  the  former  school  in  1908-9  from  grades  below 
the  eighth,  as  compared  with  65  per  cent  for  the  New  York  school 
in  1908. 

Trade  courses  about  one  year  in  length  are  given  in  dressmaking, 
millinery  and  power-machine  operating  on  clothing  and  straw  hats. 
A  little  over  one-fourth  of  the  school  time  is  given  to  academic  and 
other  supplementary  tradework  shown  below : 

Supplementary  work  (required  of  each  pupil) 

1.  Spelling 

Terms  used  in  trade 

2.  Business  forms 

Trade  problems,  bills,  accounts,  etc. 


188  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

3.  Business  English 

Application  for  positions,  ordering  materials,  letters  to  customers, 
descriptions  of  costumes,  hats,  etc. 

4.  Textiles 

Processes  of  manufacture;  judging  kinds  and  qualities  of  materials; 
learning  uses,  widths,  process,  etc. 

5.  Industrial  conditions 

History  of  local  industries,  factory  laws,  hours  of  labor,  ethics  of 
business 

6.  Color  study  and  design 

Principles  applied  in  copying  and  planning  hats,  costumes  and  other 
garments;  judging  good  and  poor  design  and  color  combinations; 
selecting  materials  in  color  schemes,  and  making  designs  for 
simple  costumes  and  for  braiding  and  embroidery 

7.  Personal  hygiene  and  gymnastics 

Care  of  nails,  hair,  teeth  and  skin 

Need  of  proper  exercise,  fresh  air,  food  and  clothing 

8.  Cooking 

Planning,  preparing  and  serving  the  daily  luncheon;  care  of  lunch- 
room, kitchen,  dishes,  closets,  towels,  etc. 

9.  Weekly  assembly 

Business  talks  by  director  or  guests 

The  school  is  in  session  7j4  hours  a  day,  5  days  in  the  week, 
12  months  in  the  year.  New  classes  are  formed  six  times  a  year. 
Tuition  is  free  to  residents ;   non-residents  pay  $8  a  month. 

A  Vocational  Assistant  is  employed  by  the  school  to  secure  posi- 
tions for  the  graduates  and  to  study  needs  and  conditions  in  the 
industries.  Eighty-five  girls  were  placed  in  positions  in  the  year 
1909-10,  and  the  demand  was  so  great  that  200  could  have  been 
placed  if  they  had  been  available. 

Practically  all  the  shopwork  is  on  commercial  products  sold  to 
individuals.  The  value  of  the  products  sold  from  September  15, 
1909,  to  February  1,  1910,  amounted  to  $1,790.61.".  The  per 
capita  cost  of  the  school  is  $126.13,  on  a  twelve-months'  basis  and 
on  an  average  membership  of  226.15  On  a  ten-months'  basis  the  per 
capita  cost  is  $105. II.15 

15  From  the  Annual  Report  of  the  Business  Agent  fcr  the  year  ending  January  31,  1910. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  189 

7.  The  Milwaukee  Trade  School  for  Girls  gives  a  one  and  one- 
half-year  course  in  dressmaking,  and  a  one-year  course  in  millinery 
to  girls  who  are  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age  and  who  are  able  to 
pass  simple  tests  in  English  and  arithmetic.  In  addition  to  the  shop- 
work,  instruction  is  given  in  cooking  and  housekeeping,  English, 
shop  mathematics,  industrial  history,  art  and  design,  and  physical 
culture. 

The  tuition  and  financial  support  for  this  school  are  the  same  as 
those  for  the  Trade  School  for  Boys.18  The  school  is  in  session 
practically  all  the  year  for  5  days  a  week,  7  hours  a  day.  About 
two-thirds  of  the  time  is  given  to  shopwork.  Some  products  are 
sold  in  the  open  market  at  current  prices. 

The  cooking  and  housekeeping  center  about  the  noon  luncheon, 
which  is  prepared,  served  and  managed  by  the  students,  and  fur- 
nished to  them  at  cost. 

B.    Under  Private  Auspices 

1.  The  Hebrew  Technical  School  for  Girls,  New  York  city, 
offers  a  Manual  Course  and  a  Commercial  Course,  each  eighteen 
months  in  length.  About  one-half  of  the  school  time  is  given  to 
academic  studies. 

For  admission  to  the  Commercial  Course  students  must  have 
been  graduated  from  the  public  grammar  schools.  For  admission 
to  the  Manual  Course  students  must  have  completed  grade  7B,  but 
preference  is  given  to  graduates  of  the  grammar  schools.  The  aver- 
age age  on  admission  is  14^4  years. 

The  school  is  not  so  strictly  limited  to  trade-school  work  as 
are  the  Manhattan  and  Boston  Trade  Schools  for  Girls.  In  the 
Manual  Course  instruction  is  given  in  dressmaking,  millinery,  hand 
and  machine  sewing,  embroidery,  designing  and  drawing.  Instruc- 
tion is  also  given  in  history,  English  grammar,  English  literature, 
physiology,  cooking,  laundry  work,  housekeeping,  physical  culture 
and  music.  At  the  end  of  eighteen  months  graduates  of  the  Manual 
Course  may  enter  the  dressmaking  workroom  and  devote  their 
entire  time  to  commercial  work,  for  which  they  receive  a  salary  from 
the  school.  About  90  per  cent  of  the  products  of  the  school  are 
sold  to  institutions  and  to  private  individuals. 

The  school  is  in  session  the  entire  year  from  8:30  a.m.  to  4:00 
p.m.    In  1909  the  average  membership  was  about  400  students,  with 

18  See  p.  182. 


190  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

a  waiting  list  of  nearly  300.  Two-thirds  of  the  students  were  in  the 
commercial  course.  The  per  capita  cost  for  1909  was  about  $125. 
The  school  is  supported  by  voluntary  contributions.  The  wages 
received  by  former  students  of  this  school  are  given  on  page  234  of 
this  report. 

2.  The  Williamson  Free  School  of  Mechanical  Trades,  located 
at  Williamson  School,  Delaware  county,  Pennsylvania,  offers 
courses,  three  years  in  length,  in  bricklaying,  carpentry,  stationary 
engineering,  machinework  and  patternmaking. 

The  school  was  established  in  1888  and  has  been  very  successful 
in  turning  out  skilled  mechanics.  Ninety-five  per  cent  of  its  726 
graduates  receive  at  once  from  sixty  to  one  hundred  per  cent  of 
full  journeymen's  wages,  nearly  all  receiving  the  latter  in  less  than 
one  year.17 

For  admission,  students  must  be  between  sixteen  and  eighteen 
years  of  age  and  must  pass  examinations  in  academic  subjects  of 
grammar-school  grade.  The  school  secures  a  picked  body  of  stu- 
dents because  the  candidates  for  admission  largely  exceed  in  number 
the  capacity  of  the  school.  Tuition,  boarding,  clothing,  etc.,  are 
entirely  free.  All  students  are  indentured  as  apprentices  for  the 
full  term  of  three  years.    The  school  year  is  eleven  months  in  length. 

About  one-half  of  the  school  time  is  spent  in  actual  shopwork 
the  first  two  years.  In  the  third  year  nearly  all  of  the  time  is  given 
to  shopwork.  The  shop  products  are  not  sold.  The  bricklaying 
and  carpenter  work  on  several  of  the  school  buildings  was  done  by 
the  students. 

Academic  instruction  is  given  in  reading,  writing,  grammar, 
arithmetic,  algebra,  geometry,  trigonometry,  physical  and  political 
geography,  United  States  history,  English  literature,  physical  sci- 
ence, physiology  and  hygiene,  civil  government,  chemistry,  elemen- 
tary vocal  music,  theory  of  the  steam  engine,  strength  of  materials, 
building  construction,  mechanical  and  free-hand  drawing  and  esti- 
mating. 

The  average  membership  in  1909-10  was  235  students.  The  per 
capita  cost,  figured  on  the  same  basis  as  public  school  instruction,  is 
about  $125. 

3.  The  School  for  Apprentices  and  Journeymen,  a  part  of  the 
Carnegie  Technical  Schools,  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania,  offers  courses, 

17  A  further  statement  concerning  the  wages  of  graduates  of  this  school  is  made  in 
connection  with  Fig.   6,  p.  232. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  191 

three  years  in  length,  in  four  machine  trades,  including  pattern- 
making,  forge,  foundry  and  machinework,  and  in  six  building  trades, 
including  bricklaying,  painting,  plumbing,  heating  and  ventilating, 
sheet  metal  and  electric  wiring.  From  forty  to  fifty  per  cent  of 
the  school  time  is  given  to  actual  shopwork. 

Students  are  admitted  to  the  above  courses  at  a  minimum  age 
of  sixteen  years  and  with  an  intellectual  preparation  equivalent  to 
a  year  or  two  of  high-school  work.  An  entrance  age  of  seventeen 
to  nineteen  years  is,  however,  stated  as  preferable  to  insure  success- 
ful work  in  the  school.  The  school  year  is  30  weeks,  5  days  a  week, 
6  hours  a  day.  Tuition  for  residents  of  Pittsburgh  is  $33  a  year; 
others  pay  $43. 

A  normal  course,  and  courses  in  mechanical  drafting  and  sta- 
tionary engineering,  each  three  years  in  length,  are  also  offered.  The 
normal  course  aims  to  prepare  teachers  for  manual  training  and 
trade  schools. 

The  average  membership  in  the  above  courses  in  the  day  school 
was  263  in  March,  1910.  The  per  capita  cost  is  about  $125.  The 
school  has  graduated  90  students  in  the  four  years  of  its  existence. 
The  wages  received  by  the  graduates  immediately  after  leaving 
school  have  ranged  from  $45  to  $110  a  month,  the  greater  number 
receiving  $65  to  $70.  The  shop  products  are  not  sold ;  some  are 
used  for  school  equipment. 

4.  The  National  Trade  Schools  and  Technical  Institute  (for- 
merly Winona  Technical  Institute),  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  offers 
two-year  courses  in  printing,  pharmacy-chemistry,  molding  and 
machinework,  a  one-year  course  in  lithography,  and  shorter  courses 
varying  in  length  from  three  to  nine  months,  in  bricklaying,  tile- 
setting  and  painting.  The  school  of  lithography  has  an  excellent 
equipment  valued  at  $23,000.. 

Practically  no  academic  work  is  offered,  except  supplementary 
science  instruction  in  the  two-year  courses.  In  molding,  for  exam- 
ple, shop  lectures  are  given  in  the  elementary  laws  of  heat,  combus- 
tion and  gases  ;  the  physical  and  chemical  qualities  of  molding  sands  ; 
the  mechanical  and  chemical  properties  of  the  different  grades  of 
pig  iron  and  their  mixtures ;  the  methods  of  storing  and  checking 
patterns ;   estimates,  prices  and  sources  of  materials. 

In  the  machine  shop,  products  are  made  for  sale,  and  students 
are  paid  fifty  per  cent  of  the  selling  price  for  work  done  on  such 


192  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

products.  All  foundry  products  are  sold,  and  students  in  this 
course  are  paid  for  shopwork  at  the  rate  of  8  cents  an  hour  at  the 
beginning  of  the  course.  The  foundry  department  is  entirely  sup- 
ported from  the  sale  of  its  products.  The  brick  and  wood  work  and 
the  electric  wiring  for  six  houses  in  Indianapolis  have  been  done 
by  students  of  the  Institute. 

In  the  machine  shop  the  cooperative  plan  is  in  use,  a  few  of  the 
students  spending  alternate  weeks  in  commercial  shops  and  in  the 
school  shops. 

The  school  is  supported  by  contributions  from  manufacturers' 
and  employers'  associations,  by  voluntary  subscriptions  and  by  a 
tuition  fee  of  $100  in  all  departments.  The  minimum  age  for 
admission  is  sixteen  years.  No  definite  academic  requirements  are 
set  for  admission.  About  250  students  were  enrolled  in  February, 
1910. 

5.  The  School  of  Printing,  North  End  Union,  Boston,  Massa- 
chusetts, shows  a  very  interesting  contribution  to  the  solution  of 
the  problem  of  the  status  of  the  trade-school  graduate.  A  student 
on  entering  the  School  of  Printing  is  regularly  indentured  to  a  mas- 
ter printer,  the  school  term  of  one  year  serving  as  one  of  the  five 
years  in  the  apprenticeship  term.  A  tuition  fee  of  $100  is  charged 
for  the  year  in  school.  At  the  beginning  of  the  second  year  the 
apprentice  enters  his  employer's  workshop  and  receives  $9  a  week 
for  the  first  half-year,  and  is  regularly  advanced  in  half-year  stages 
to  $16  a  week  for  the  last  half  of  the  fifth  year. 

Students  are  admitted  to  the  school  at  a  minimum  age  of  sixteen 
years.  The  sessions  are  48  hours  a  week  for  50  weeks.  The  school 
is  under  the  supervision  of  a  committee  of  master  printers.  The 
instruction  embraces  book,  job  and  advertising  composition,  and 
platen-presswork.  Eight  students  were  enrolled  in  1909.  The 
equipment,  capable  of  accommodating  15  students,  is  valued  at 
$2,700. 

6.  The  short-course  trade  school  is  well  exemplified  by  the 
Baron  de  Hirsh  and  New  York  Trade  Schools,  for  boys,  and  the 
Manhattan18  and  Boston  19  Trade  Schools,  for  girls.  All  of  these 
schools  aim  to  give  in  the  shortest  possible  time  an  intensely  prac- 
tical  training   sufficient   to   enable   graduates   to   take   positions    as 

18  See  p.  186. 

19  See  p.  1S7. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  193 

helpers  or  improvers  and  to  advance  rapidly  to  full  journeyman 
status.  A  very  small  portion  of  the  school  time  is  given  to  academic 
work. 

7.  The  Baron  de  Hirsch  Trade  School,  New  York  city,  offers 
courses,  5l/2  months  in  length,  in  carpentry,  plumbing,  electrical 
work,  machinework,  house  and  fresco  painting  and  sign  painting. 
The  shop  products  are  not  sold. 

The  sessions  are  8  hours  a  day,  5  days  a  week.  Nearly  ten  per 
cent  of  the  time  is  given  to  drawing,  mensuration  and  shop  arith- 
metic. Tuition  is  free.  The  age  requirement  for  admission  is 
sixteen  years.  The  average  age  on  admission  is  17^  years.  The 
per  capita  cost  for  260  students  graduated  in  one  year  was  $132. 
The  school  is  supported  by  the  income  from  the  Baron  de  Hirsch 
Fund. 

8.  The  New  York  Trade  School.  New  York  city,  offers  day 
courses,  four  months  in  length,  in  plumbing,  electrical  work,  fresco 
painting,  sign  painting,  cornice  and  skylight  work,  sheet-metal  pat- 
tern drafting,  bricklaying,  carpentry,  steam  and  hot-water  fitting. 
The  shop  products  are  not  sold.  No  academic  work  is  given.  The 
school  is  supported  by  endowment  and  by  tuition  fees  ranging  from 
$25  to  $45.  The  average  attendance  in  day  classes  in  1909-10  was 
about  135. 

5.  Technical20  and  Trade  Courses  in  High  Schools 
1.  The  Technical  High  School,  Cleveland,  Ohio,  opened  in 
October,  1908,  gives  one-half  of  the  school  time  to  shop  and  drawing 
in  the  first  three  years,  and  two-thirds  in  the  fourth  year.  The  shop- 
work  for  boys  in  the  first  two  and  one-third  years  includes  general 
courses  in  turning,  cabinetmaking,  patternmaking,  foundry,  forge 
and  machine  work.  In  the  last  part  of  the  third  year,  and  through- 
out the  fourth  year,  specialization  in  a  particular  trade  will  be  per- 
mitted, perhaps  on  the  cooperative  plan  of  one  week  in  commercial 
shops  and  the  next  week  in  school.  A  course  in  practical  printing 
and  bookbinding  will  be  offered  as  a  fourth-year  elective.  The  shop 
products  are  not  sold  ;  some  are  used  for  equipment. 

The  handwork  for  girls  includes  applied  art,  dressmaking,  mil- 
linery, laundry,  cooking  and  catering,  with  specialization  allowed 
in  the  third  and  fourth  years. 

20  For  a  discussion  of  the  distinction  between  technical  and  manual-training  high 
schools,  see  the  report  on  The  Place  of  Industries  in  Public  Education,  by  a  Committee  of 
the  National  Council  of  Education,  July,  1910. 

14 


194 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Preparation  for  college  is  not  the  dominating  aim  of  the  school. 
Four  colleges,  however,  admit  graduates  to  the  college  technical 
courses,  on  recommendation  of  the  principal. 

The  academic  subjects  are  not  treated  in  the  usual  manner.  The 
mathematics,  for  example,  is  taught  more  as  a  tool  for  use  in  the 
shops  and  in  industry,  than  as  an  abstract  science,  and  the  various 
branches,  arithmetic,  algebra,  geometry  and  trigonometry  are  inter- 
woven into  a  single  subject.  The  science  courses  are  likewise 
treated  as  applied  science.  German  is  the  only  language  offered, 
other  than  English.  Outlines  of  the  courses  in  physics  and  mathe- 
matics are  given  on  pages  217,  228  of  this  report. 

Since  all  subjects  are  treated  largely  with  respect  to  their  appli- 
cations, and  since  the  applications  which  are  of  interest  and  value 
to  boys  differ  greatly  from  those  which  are  of  interest  and  value  to 
girls,  all  classes  in  the  school  are  segregated. 

The  school  year  is  divided  into  four  quarters  of  twelve  weeks 
each,  and  new  classes  are  formed  each  quarter. 

All  shop  instructors  have  had  more  or  less  practical  experience 
in  commercial  shops. 

This  school  and  the  High  School  of  Commerce,  which  was  started 
in  October,  1909,  have  been  largely  instrumental  in  bringing  about 
an  increase  of  1,002,  or  20  per  cent,  in  the  total  high-school  enrol- 
ment in  Cleveland,  whereas  in  the  three  years  preceding  the  opening 
of  the  Technical  High  School,  the  enrolment  in  high  schools  had 
remained  practically  stationary.21  In  the  Technical  High  School 
the  enrolment  in  1909-10  was  1,103. 

2.  The  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls,  Boston,  Mas- 
sachusetts, is  a  part  of  the  public  school  system,  and  gives  a  little 
over  half  the  time  to  handwork,  including  applied  art.22  In  the  first 
year  all  students  take  the  same  work,  which  includes  handwork  in 
sewing,  cooking  and  housewifery  and  applied  art.  In  the  last  three 
years  vocational  courses  are  elected  in  dressmaking,  millinery  or 
household  science. 

21  The  figures  as  furnished  by  the  Superintendent  of  Schools  are  shown  in  the  follow- 
ing table: 

High-school  attendance,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 


Total  l.isjh-school  enrolment 

Total  population  of  school  age. . . 


1905-6 


4,983 
121,883 


1906-7 


5,059 
125,368 


1907-S 


4,989 
128,043 


1908-9 


5,516 
129,030 


1909-10 


5,991 


22  A  description  of  the  course  in  drawing  is  given  on  p.  218. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  195 

The  academic  work  is  the  same  for  all  students  throughout  the 
four  years,  and  includes  English,  history,  mathematics,  science, 
French  and  German.    The  school  does  not  prepare  for  college. 

Science  and  mathematics  are  taught  largely  through  their  appli- 
cations to  the  home  and  industrial  needs  of  the  girls.  In  history 
special  attention  is  given  to  the  development  of  art  and  industry. 

The  school  was  organized  in  September,  1907,  and  is  open  to 
graduates  of  the  grammar  school.  Three  hundred  and  sixty  students 
were  in  attendance  in  May,  1910.  The  number  of  applications  for 
admission  to  the  school  in  1909-10  was  double  the  number  that  could 
be  accommodated.  The  shop  products  are  not  sold.  The  per  capita 
cost  for  the  year  ending  January  31,  1910,  was  $85.66.23  The  cor- 
responding per  capita  cost  of  all  normal,  Latin  and  high  schools  in 
the  city  was  $78. 81.24  The  school  sessions  are  5%  hours  a  day,  5 
days  in  the  week,  for  the  regular  school  year. 

3.  In  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  a  Boys'  Industrial  Course  and  a  Girls' 
Industrial  Course  are  given  in  each  of  two  high  schools,  which  offer 
also  the  usual  academic  and  manual  training  courses.25 

In  the  industrial  courses  the  usual  four  years'  work  in  manual 
training,  for  the  boys,  and  in  domestic  science  and  arts,  for  the  girls, 
is  completed  in  the  first  two  years.  For  this  purpose  about  five- 
eighths  of  the  school  time  the  first  two  years  is  given  to  shop  and 
drawing,  for  the  boys,  and  to  handwork,  including  applied  art,  for 
the  girls.  All  classes  are  segregated.  In  the  last  two  years  the  stu- 
dents specialize  in  some  trade  as  apprentices  in  commercial  shops 
or  stores,  under  pay,  spending  alternate  weeks  in  school  and  shop. 

The  courses  are  offered  for  the  first  time  in  1910-11.  The  sub- 
jects of  study  and  the  distribution  of  time  are  shown  in  the  following 
outline : 


23  Exclusive  of  repairs,   rent,   administration  and  supervision.      Taken   from   the  Annual 
Report  of  Business  Agent. 

24  Annual  Report  of  Business  Agent. 

26  For  the  relation  of  the  administration  of  the  industrial  courses  to  the  regular  high- 
school  administration,  see  p.   210. 


196 


REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Boys'  Industrial  Course 


First  Year 

Second  Year 

Third  Year 

Fourth  Year 

4 

History        (indus- 

Arithmetic and 

Applied  mathe- 

trial   of   U.    S.) 

4 

and   civics    ....    5 

Industrial  geog- 

4 

Applied  mathe- 
matics,      shop 

Shop    science   and 

4 

shop  practice..  .10 

Foundry,  forge 

problems      and 

Turnirig,      pattern 

and    machine.. 

16 

Applied  mathe- 

and   cabinet 

Physical      training 

Cooperative  plan: 

matics  and  shop 

(optional)     . .  . 

2 

Alternate       weeks 

Physical      training 

in        shop        and 

Cooperative  plan: 

(optional)     ....    2 

school 

Alternate        weeks 
in       shop       and 
school 

Girls'  Industrial  Course 


First  Year 

Second  Year 

Third  Year 

Fourth  Year 

5 

4 

American     history 

Arithmetic  and 

Geometry  and 

Physiology    4 

,    S 

5 

4 

Applied   art 5 

Applied   art 

5 

5 

Elect    specialty. .  .20 

B 

4 

2 

Millinery,    etc. 

Elect    specialty.. 

.20 

8 

Cooking  and 

Dressmaking,   tail- 

Physical  training. 

2 

household  arts.. 

6 

oring      and      art 

1 

Millinery  and 

dressmaking   . .  . 
Physical    training. 

8 

a 

i 

needlework;    home 
economics;      office 
training;         sales- 
manship 

4.     The  Technical  High  School,  Newton,  Massachusetts,  offers 
the  following  five  courses  :26 

Technology-college  Course,  leading  to  colleges  and  schools  of 
technology. 

Technical  Course 
Extra  Technical  Course 
Fine  Arts  Course 
Commercial  Course 


Not  leading  to  college. 


Students  in  the  academic  high  school,  located  near  the  Technical 
High  School,  may  take  optional  courses  in  manual  training  in  the 
Technical  High  School. 

26  For  the  outline  of  the  entire  high-school  curriculum,  see  p.  134. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  197 

In  the  Extra  Technical  Course  for  boys  and  girls  the  usual  four 
years'  work  in  manual  training  for  boys,  and  in  domestic  science 
and  art  for  girls,  is  completed  in  the  first  three  years.  For  this  pur- 
pose a  little  over  one-half  of  the  time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing, 
for  boys,  and  to  handwork,  including  design,  for  girls.  In  the  fourth 
year  specialization  in  the  shopwork  is  permitted.  Individual  pupils 
may  arrange  to  do  this  specialized  work  in  commercial  shops  on 
some  kind  of  a  part-time  plan. 

The  Technical  High  School  was  opened  for  the  first  time  in  Sep- 
tember, 1909,  with  500  students  enrolled.  All  shop  teachers  have 
had  more  or  less  experience  in  commercial  shops.  The  shop  prod- 
ucts are  not  sold.  About  fifty  per  cent  of  the  products  the  first  year 
were  used  for  school  equipment,  including  T-squares,  drawing- 
boards,  suit-case  toolboxes  for  individual  students,  drawer  equip- 
ment, apparatus  for  physics  laboratory,  etc. 

An  outline  of  the  subjects  of  study,  and  of  the  distribution  of 
time,  is  herewith  appended.  The  outline  shows  three  applied  aca- 
demic subjects  :  in  the  third  year,  shop  mathematics  and  mechanics  ; 
in  the  fourth  year  a  course  in  arithmetic  and  accounts  and  a  course 
in  applied  mechanics  and  steam. 


EXTRA  TECHNICAL  COURSE 

Purpose  of  the  course:    This  course  prepares  for  work  in  the  productive 
industries. 

first  year  Also  elect  one  group 

Periods  Periods 

Physics     5 

Light     machine     and     visework,"] 

y2  year llO 

Forging,  l/2  year J 

Mechanical  drawing 4 

Biology  and  chemistry 5 

(Cabinetmaking  and  wood  turning.  10       )  Household  economics" 10 

]  Mechanical  drawing    4         Design  4 

(Household  economics   10 


English   4 

Elementary  science 5 

History  or  arithmetic  and  algebra.  4 

Singing  and  physical  training 2 

Elect  one  group 


^Design    4 

SECOND   YEAR 

English   4 

Geometry  or  history 4      Commercial  geography  and  history.  5 


THIRD   YEAR 
SECOND   YEAR 

English    4       English    4 


198 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


THIRD    YEAR 

Elect  one  group 

'Shop  math,  and  mechanics 5 

Patternmaking  and  molding,   Y^y 

year    [-10 

Machine-shop  practice,  y2  year.. J 

Mechanical  drawing 4 

Chemistry  and  physiology 5 

Household  economics   10 

Design   4 


Stenography   5 

Typewriting    5 

Bookkeeping 5 

Cabinetwork    6-10 

Forgework 6-10 

Toolmaking 6-10 

Patternmaking    6-10 

General  machine-shop  practice. .  .6-10 
Machine    or    architectural    draw- 
ing:     4-10 


FOURTH    YEAR 

English 4 

American  history  and  government.  4 

Arithmetic  and  accounts 2 

Elect  18-20  periods 

Algebra  and  geometry 4 

Chemistry    6 

Physics    6 

Physiology  and  hygiene 4 

Biology  5 

Electricity    6 

Applied  mechanics  and  steam 4 

Trigonometry   4 


Dressmaking 6-10 

Millinery    6-10 

Dietetics   5 

Foods    5 

Laundering   5 

Catering    and    lunch-room    prac- 
tice     6-10 

Design 4-10 

In  place  of  a  part  of  the  elective 
requirements  of  this  year,  individual 
pupils  may  engage  in  approved  work 
—  of  educative  value  —  outside  of 
school. 


Note. —  With  the  approval  of  the  principal,  a  practical  study  of  the  ele- 
ments of  gardening  and  forestry  may  be  substituted  for  a  portion  of  the  pre- 
scribed work  of  the  first  three  years,  and  may  be  taken  as  a  6-10  period, 
elective  in  the  fourth  year. 


5.  The  Technical  High  School,  Springfield,  Massachusetts,27 
offers  a  technical  course  for  boys,  and  one  for  girls,  in  which  about 
one-half  of  the  school  time  is  given  to  shop  and  drawing,  throughout 
the  four  years,  with  specialization  in  a  particular  shop  in  the  fourth 

27  The  technical  high  schools  at  Newton  and  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  are  good 
examples  of  high  schools  which  provide  college  preparation  in  manual  training  and  other 
courses,  but  endeavor  also  to  give  special  technical  courses  for  pupils  who  wish  to  enter 
the  industries  immediately  after  graduation.  Such  efforts  are,  of  course,  commendable. 
There  is,  however,  considerable  debate  at  present  as  to  whether  courses  so  organized  can, 
under  present  conditions,  meet  the  need  for  specialized  technical  training  on  the  secondary 
level  as  fully  as  that  need  ought  to  be  met;  whether  both  the  academic  and  the  shop 
instruction  can  be  adapted  to  industrial  needs  as  closely  and  completely  under  such  a 
plan  as  under  a  more  isolated  form  of  organization  such  as  is  shown  by  the  Cleveland 
and  Cincinnati  high  schools  and  the  Boston  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls.  It 
is  largely  a  question  of  the  extent  to  which  college-entrance  requirements  and  traditional 
academic  standards  may  interfere  with  the  complete  development  of  the  specialized  tech- 
nical course  on  its  own  merits,  especially  in  its  present  experimental  stage.  It  will  there- 
fore be  interesting  to  watch  the  future  development  of  the  five  schools  mentioned,  because 
they  represent  definite  efforts  to  solve  the  problem  in  distinctly  different  ways. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  199 

year.  A  house  for  the  use  of  girls  in  the  domestic  science  and  art 
courses  is  to  be  erected  on  the  school  premises.  It  is  to  be  built, 
equipped  and  furnished  completely  by  the  boys  and  girls  in  the  high 
school  assisted  by  the  boys  in  the  Vocational  School.28 

6.  Afternoon  industrial  classes,  Boston,  Massachusetts,  are 
offered  in  two  high  schools:  in  one,  a  course  in  jewelry  and  silver- 
smithing  is  offered  ;  in  the  other,  elementary  electric  manufacturing. 
The  courses  were  started  in  September,  1909.  Admission  is  limited 
to  students  regularly  enrolled  in  the  high  school  who  have  had  a 
year  or  two  of  drawing  and  manual  training.  Each  student  pays  for 
the  material  used,  and  will  own  the  product  of  his  work.  About 
four  hours  a  week  are  given  to  this  work,  and  regular  credit  toward 
graduation  is  granted. 

In  the  class  in  jewelry  and  silversmithing  22  students  were 
enrolled  in  May,  1910.  The  work  consists  of  (1)  drawing  a  design 
of  the  object  to  be  made,  (2)  modeling  the  object  in  plasticine,  (3) 
making  the  finished  object  in  metal.  Some  of  the  products  made 
were  jewelry -boxes,  paper-knives,  pad-corners,  desk  sets  with  orna- 
mental designs,  scarfpins  out  of  silver  wire,  necklaces,  silver  rings 
set  with  inexpensive  stones,  copper  charms,  inkwells,  fobs,  etc.  The 
cost  of  this  course  is  less  than  that  of  the  regular  manual  training 
course. 

7.  In  the  high  school  at  Menomonie,  Wisconsin,  elective  courses, 
each  two  years  in  length,  are  offered  in  the  third  and  fourth  years 
in  machine-shop  practice,  machine  drafting,  architectural  drafting, 
plumbing  and  bricklaying.  Seven  and  one-half  hours  a  week,  for 
the  regular  school  term,  are  given  to  this  work.  The  regular  manual 
training,  including  cabinetmaking,  turning,  patternmaking  and  foun- 
dry practice,  is  offered  in  the  first  and  second  years.  In  the  year 
1910-11  a  house  was  to  be  built  for  a  citizen  of  Menomonie  by  mem- 
bers of  the  sophomore  class  in  the  high  school.  All  the  carpenter 
work  for  this  house,  and  the  bricklaying,  plumbing,  decorating,  fit- 
ting, etc.,  is  to  be  done  by  the  high-school  students. 

8.  In  the  high  school  at  Muskegon,  Michigan,-9  a  three-year 
elective  course  in  printing  is  given  in  grades  9,  10  and  11,  requiring 
1^2  hours  a  day  for  five  days  in  the  week.    Thirty-five  students  were 

28  For  a  description  of  the  Vocational  School,  see  p.  ISO. 

20  This  school  was  not  visited  by  the  committee's  representative.     The  informal 
obtained   from  the   Superintendent  of  Schools. 


200  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

enrolled  in  February,  1910.  The  equipment,  capable  of  accommodat- 
ing 12  students  at  one  time,  is  valued  at  $1,200.  The  students  print 
school  blanks,  the  school  paper,  physics  exercises,  etc. 

6.     Co-operative  Schools  and  Courses 
A.    Day  Continuation  Schools30 

1.  The  Day  Continuation  School,  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  is  supported 
entirely  by  the  public  school  authorities  and  offers  supplementary 
instruction  to  about  200  apprentices  from  18  different  machine  shops 
who  give  four  hours  a  week  to  this  study,  during  working  hours, 
without  loss  of  pay.  The  students  are  divided  into  nine  groups, 
each  group  meeting  one-half  day  a  week  for  48  weeks.  The  course 
is  four  years  long,  corresponding  to  the  regular  apprenticeship  term. 
No  toolwork  is  given  in  school. 

The  course  of  study  is  as  follows : 

For  first-year  apprentices 

Shop  arithmetic 

Geographic  relations  of  shop  materials 
Making  and  reading  drawings 
Much  reading,  spelling,  writing 

For  second-year  apprentices 

Objective  geometry 

Iron,  its  manufacture  and  founding 

Shop  conventionalities  and  their  necessity 

Composition  on  shop  topics ;    lives  of  industrial  leaders 

For  third-year  apprentices 

Algebra 

Physics 

Foreman's  question  box 

History,  literature  and  civics 

For  fourth-year  apprentices 

Trigonometry 

Physics 

Shop  practice 

Debating;    man  as  wage-earner  and  voter 

80  Although  the  schools  under  2  and  3  of  this  section  are  commercial,  not  industrial, 
in  character,  they  are  here  included  because  of  the  light  they  may  throw  upon  the  general 
problem  of  the  organization  of  day  continuation  schools. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  201 

The  school  was  started  in  September,  1909.  Two  teachers  are 
employed.  One  teacher  is  allowed  two  half-days  a  week  to  visit 
shops,  consult  with  foremen,  and  gather  practical  shop  problems. 
The  manufacturers  furnish  blue-prints  and  catalogues  of  machines 
for  the  students  to  study.  The  cost  of  the  school  is  about  $2,000 
a  year. 

The  following  quotation  from  the  superintendent's  report  gives 
an  idea  of  the  value  of  the  work. 

In  most  cases  the  output  of  the  boys  in  the  shops  is  greater  than  when 
they  worked  full  time.  Their  attitude  toward  their  employer,  the  foreman 
and  the  machine  is  wholly  changed.  In  the  school  the  boys  show  commend- 
able progress  and  a  remarkably  earnest  and  serious  spirit.  The  boy  just 
entering  this  apprenticeship  appreciates  it  least,  but  a  few  weeks  of  shop 
life  change  his  attitude  toward  the  school,  as  with  the  older  boys  a  few 
weeks  of  the  school  change  their  attitude  toward  the  shop.  When  the  boys 
return  to  their  shops  they  are  quizzed  by  the  workmen  and  foremen,  and  the 
lessons  given  in  the  school  are  quite  generally  discussed  in  the  shops.  Many 
of  the  workmen  express  a  desire  to  have  the  advantages  of  such  schooling. 

It  is  believed  the  number  of  manufacturing  firms  now  cooperating  will 
be  doubled  when  the  school  is  properly  housed  and  a  sufficient  staff  of 
teachers  is  appointed. 

An  extension  of  the  continuation-school  idea  is  contemplated.  There  are 
at  least  15,000  young  people  under  twenty  years  of  age  now  at  work  in  com- 
mercial and  industrial  lines  in  this  city  who  would  be  greatly  benefited  by 
having  an  opportunity  to  continue  their  schooling.  The  evening  schools 
reach  about  5,000.    At  least  10,000  need  looking  after. 

The  Women  Teachers'  Club  has  a  capable  committee  now  at  work  to  see 
what  can  be  done  for  girls.  It  is  hoped  that  by  next  September  we  may  have 
the  demand  for  a  continuation  school  for  young  women  in  stores  and  fac- 
tories.31 

2.  Day  continuation  classes  in  Boston,  Massachusetts,  are  pro- 
vided by  the  public  school  authorities  for  young  men  and  women 
already  at  work  whose  employers  permit  them  to  attend  the  classes 
during  working  hours,  without  loss  of  pay.  The  courses  offered, 
with  the  time  schedules,  are  as  follows : 

Shoe  and  Leather  —  Tuesdays  and  Thursdays 3  to  5  p.m. 

Dry  Goods  —  Mondays  and  Fridays 3  to  5  p.m. 

Preparatory  Salesmanship : 

Boys  —  Tuesdays   and    Thursdays 8:30  to  11  a.m. 

Girls  —  Wednesdays   and   Fridays 8:30  to  11  a.m. 

31  A  continuation  school  for  saleswomen  and  one  for  children  at  work  between  four- 
teen and  sixteen   years  of  age  were  established  in  January,  1911. 


202  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Each  course  at  present  is  ten  weeks  in  length.  The  only  expense 
assumed  by  the  School  Committee  is  the  salary  of  the  Director,  and 
the  rent,  care  and  furnishing  of  the  rooms.  An  advisory  committee 
for  each  of  the  industries  concerned  assumes  the  responsibility  of 
securing  experts  in  the  industry  to  give  the  instruction. 

The  courses  were  started  in  April,  1910.  In  the  dry-goods  and  in 
the  shoe  and  leather  courses  the  instruction  is  given  solely  by 
employers  and  experts  in  the  industry.  In  the  courses  in  prepara- 
tory salesmanship  the  instruction  is  given  by  one  of  the  public- 
school  teachers,  especially  fitted  for  the  work,  supplemented  by  talks 
by  heads  of  departments  and  experts  in  various  dry-goods  houses. 
It  is  planned  to  develop  instructors  from  the  present  student  body 
to  take  the  place  of  the  experts  now  giving  the  instruction.  An  out- 
line of  the  courses  of  study  is  here  given. 

Shoe  and  Leather  Course 

The  production  and  distribution  of  leather ;  tanning  processes ;  leather 
manufacture;  recognition  of  kinds,  grades  and  comparative  values  of 
leathers ;  manufacture  and  classification  of  shoes ;  commercial  arithmetic ; 
commercial  geography ;  commercial  correspondence ;  salesmanship  ;  efficiency 
training. 

Dry-goods  Course 

Fibers  ;  cotton  and  cotton  goods  ;  wool,  worsteds  and  woolens  ;  silk  and 
silk  fabrics ;  linen  and  linen  fabrics ;  recognition  and  comparison  of  mixed 
fabrics;  simple  tests  for  determining  quality;  coloring  materials  and  color 
preservation;  shrinking;  mercerization ;  non-inflammable  fabrics;  care  of 
stock;  commercial  arithmetic;  commercial  geography;  commercial  corre- 
spondence ;    salesmanship ;    efficiency  training. 

Preparatory  Salesmanship 

Commercial  correspondence ;  facility  in  oral  and  written  expression ; 
store  arithmetic ;  sales-slip  practice ;  sources  of  merchandise  and  its  dis- 
tribution; raw  materials ;  textiles;  penmanship;  color  and  design;  hygiene; 
practical  talks  on  the  fundamental  principles  of  success ;    salesmanship. 

The  various  lecturers  bring  large  quantities  of  material  to  the 
classes  for  illustrating  their  talks.  This  material  includes  leathers, 
shoes  and  fabrics  in  all  stages  of  manufacture.  They  also  make 
considerable  use  of  the  blackboard.  All  these  lectures  are  steno- 
graphically  recorded  and  kept  for  future  use.  Reports  are  made  to 
employers  on  the  progress  of  the  pupils. 

Persons  over  eighteen  years  of  age  are  not  admitted  to  the  class 
in  preparatory  salesmanship.     The  ages  of  the  students  in  the  other 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  203 

classes  range  from  fifteen  or  seventeen  to  twenty-eight  or  thirty. 
Each  class  is  composed  of  from  forty  to  fifty  students.  A  few  are 
college  graduates,  but  the  majority  have  not  been  graduated  from 
the  high  school. 

Additional  courses  are  under  consideration  for  bank  clerks  and 
for  persons  in  the  wool  industry. 

3.  The  School  of  Salesmanship  for  Girls,  Boston,  Massachu- 
setts, is  conducted  by  the  Women's  Educational  and  Industrial 
Union  in  cooperation  with  five  department  stores.  Each  store  sends 
six  students  from  its  regular  force  to  the  school  for  the  course, 
which  is  three  months,  daily  except  Monday,  from  8  :30  to  11 :30  a.m. 
The  full  wage,  $6  or  more,  is  paid  by  the  store  to  the  student  while 
she  attends  the  school. 

The  purpose  of  the  course  is:  (1)  to  teach  right  thinking 
toward  the  work  as  a  profession  and  arouse  a  feeling  of  responsibil- 
ity; (2)  to  develop  a  pleasing  personality;  (3)  to  instil  a  regard 
for  system  and  cultivate  a  habit  of  attention  to  details ;  (4)  to 
instruct  in  those  subjects  which  increase  knowledge  of  goods  to  be 
sold. 

The  subjects  taught  are: 

Salesmanship,  which  includes  discussion  of  store  experience,  demonstra- 
tion of  actual  selling  in  class  and  lectures  by  representatives  of  the  firms 
interested. 

Hygiene,  which  includes  study  of  daily  menus,  ventilation,  bathing,  sleep, 
exercise  and  recreation. 

English,  including  spelling  and  business  forms. 

Arithmetic,  which  includes  sales-slip  practice,  business  arithmetic,  busi- 
ness forms  and  cash  account. 

Stock,  which  includes  a  study  of  the  nature  of  cloths,  and  processes  of 
manufacture,  color  and  design  as  applied  to  ribbons,  display  of  goods  in 
showcase,  etc. 

Practical  talks  by  representatives  of  the  firms  interested,  experi- 
enced salespeople,  buyers,  customers  and  superintendents,  are  given 
twice  a  week  to  the  class  on  subjects  such  as  "  The  Department 
Store's  System  and  the  Saleswoman's  Place  in  It,"  "  How  to  Show 
Goods,"  "  Trifles,"  "  Textiles,"  "  Service  to  Customers,"  "  Cus- 
tomer's Point  of  View." 

The  demonstration  sales  are  conducted  like  the  practice  teaching 
in  normal  schools.  Real  customers,  chosen  because  they  represent 
different  types,  buy  real  articles.     The  sale  is  watched  by  the  class, 


204  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAIN  I XG 

notes  being  taken  of  strong  and  weak  points.  When  the  sale  is  fin- 
ished, the  one  who  has  made  the  sale  is  allowed  to  criticize  her  own 
work,  and  then  the  class  criticizes,  the  customer  tells  why  she  did 
or  did  not  buy  the  article,  and  the  whole  is  summed  up  by  the 
Director. 

As  far  as  possible,  the  classwork  is  correlated ;  the  drawing  is 
a  store  plan  or  a  design  for  a  costume  ;  the  note-book  work  required 
gives  material  for  English,  including  spelling,  names  and  addresses, 
punctuation,  penmanship  and  store  English  (and  French)  ;  when  the 
girls  are  sent  to  the  stores  for  samples,  salesmanship,  color,  designs, 
textiles  are  studied.  The  manner  of  the  salesman  in  giving  the 
sample  is  observed  and  reported,  the  color  and  design  are  used  in 
the  color  lesson,  and  the  material  in  the  textile  work.  If  the  textile 
being  studied  is  wool,  one  of  the  store  lectures  at  that  time  will  be 
on  wool  or  woolen  goods. 

The  school  was  started  in  1906.  An  advisory  committee  repre- 
senting the  cooperating  firms  aids  in  determining  the  policy  of  the 
school.  For  admission,  girls  must  be  at  least  eighteen  years  of  age 
and  must  have  a  good  fundamental  education.  Ninety  students  were 
graduated  in  1909. 

The  attitude  of  the  cooperating  stores  toward  the  school  training 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  some  superintendents  already  admit  that 
three  well-trained  saleswomen  can  manage  a  counter  better  than  six 
indifferent  ones,  and  the  well-trained,  with  good  salaries,  cost  the 
store  no  more  than  the  inefficient  six. 

4.  The  importance  of  providing  day  continuation  schools  for 
those  at  work  in  unskilled  industries  justifies  the  insertion  at  this 
place  of  the  following  statement  of  the  organization  and  curriculum 
for  such  schools  in  [Munich,  Germany.32 

District  Continuation  Schools 

Fundamental  Features 

a.  Attendance  is  for  those  who  have  spent  eight  years  in  a  weekday 
school.  This  course  comprises  two  years ;  the  total  compulsory  school 
attendance  is  therefore  ten  years. 

b.  Attendance  is  required  of  all  boys  who  are  compelled  to  attend  a 
Sunday  vocational  school,  and  who  live  or  work  in  Munich,  provided  they 

32  Translated  from  Organisation  und  Lehrplane  dcr  Obligatorischen  Fach-itnd  Fort- 
bildungsschulen  fiir  Knaben  in  Miinchen,  1910.  Outlines  of  the  continuation  schools  for 
building-trade  workers,  in  Munich,  are  given  on  p.  119  ff. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  205 

do  not  attend  any  other  vocational  school  or  are  not  for  some  good  reason 
excused  from  compulsory  attendance. 

c.  Instruction  in  the  district  continuation  schools  is  given  on  weekdays. 

d.  Courses  of  instruction  are  given  in  the  following  subjects: 


Courses 


Religion 

Composition  and  reading1 

Arithmetic1 

Life  and  citizenship 

Gymnastics  and  gymnastic  games,  swimming. 
Manual  training  and  drawing 


Hours  of  instruction 


Class  I 

Class  II 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2 

2 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2 

2 

Subject  Matter 

a.  Religion.    The  instruction  is  prescribed  by  the  church  authorities. 

b.  Composition,  with  reading.  Through  the  course  in  composition  the 
pupil  should  acquire  the  ability  to  write  the  most  important  private  and  busi- 
ness letters  and  papers  correctly  as  to  grammar,  syntax  and  orthography. 

Class  I.  The  private  letter :  Communication  to  members  of  the  family, 
to  relatives  and  friends  concerning  the  life  and  experience  of  the  pupil, 
also  on  school  topics.  Asking  for  and  giving  information,  help  wanted,  appli- 
cations for  work;  advertisements,  price  inquiries,  ordering  of  goods  and 
labor ;    different  forms  of  letter  writing. 

Class  II.  Labor  contracts,  bills,  receipts,  complaints,  excuses,  testimonials, 
recommendations ;  compositions  about  debt  relations,  buying  on  credit,  prom- 
issory notes,  requests  and  demands  for  payment  of  bills,  discounts ;  written 
communications  to  officials.  Diary  notes  from  the  pupil's  daily  experiences. 
Various  forms  of  bills  of  lading.  The  instruction  in  reading,  together  with 
that  in  life  and  citizenship,  aims  to  aid  the  moral  and  general  education 
of  the  pupils,  and  to  instil  in  them  pleasure  and  taste  for  good  literature. 
For  this  reason  the  school  library  is  to  be  used.  From  time  to  time  a  com- 
plete work  of  the  German  classical  period  is  to  be  read.  The  selection  of  the 
reading  is  in  the  hands  of  the  teachers. 

c.  Arithmetic.  The  instruction  in  arithmetic  should  give  the  pupil  an 
understanding  of  how  to  conduct  a  household  properly;  it  should  awaken 
in  him  a  desire  for  economy,  and  give  him  a  suitable  facility  in  industrial 
arithmetic. 

Class  I.  Arithmetic  necessary  for  the  home  and  business  of  a  trade 
worker :  Earnings  of  a  workingman  by  hours,  days,  weeks,  months  and 
years ;  the  daily,  weekly,  monthly  and  yearly  expenses  of  a  single  person 
and  of  a  family ;  wage  book,  household-account  book,  balance  for  the  month. 
for  the  year,  savings  accounts  and  interest,  estimates  for  buying  and  selling, 
loss  and  gain,  rebate,  business  expenses. 

1  The  number  of  hours  in  composition  and  arithmetic  is  interchanged  in  alternate 
weeks. 


206  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Class  II.  Bills  relating  to  taxes  and  insurance.  Simple  problems  on 
surfaces  and  solids  in  connection  with  manual  training.  Drafts  and  checks. 
Simple  bookkeeping  for  a  business  during  one  month. 

d.  Life  and  citizenship.  This  instruction  aims  to  give  the  pupil  an 
insight  into  a  rational  mode  of  living.  Therefore  it  teaches  hygiene,  the 
problems  of  life  in  vocation,  community  and  state,  and  above  all  it  teaches 
those  things  out  of  which  the  pupil  gains  a  knowledge  of  the  necessary  inter- 
relations of  the  interests  of  all  classes  and  vocations. 

Class  I.  Relation  of  an  apprentice  to  his  work  and  master,  apprentice- 
ship indenture.  Instruction  in  deportment :  Conduct  at  home,  in  school,  on 
the  street,  in  society,  toward  superiors,  employer  and  master.  Hygiene : 
Structure  of  the  human  body  in  general;  nutrition;  injurious  and  nutritious 
food ;  respiration  and  blood  circulation ;  care  of  the  skin,  mouth  and  teeth ; 
dwelling  and  clothing;  work  and  recreation;  care  of  habits  and  the  nerve 
system.  First  aid  to  the  injured.  The  most  important  causes  of  disease; 
value  of  cleanliness. 

Class  II.  History  of  handwork  in  general.  The  old  guilds.  Present 
status  of  the  trades.  The  present  trade  unions.  Division  of  labor.  Working 
for  wages.  Importance  and  value  of  every  kind  of  honorable  labor  to  the 
individual,  as  well  as  to  the  community  and  nation.  The  community,  prob- 
lems of  the  community,  social  and  economic  institutions,  rights  and  duties  of 
a  citizen  of  the  community,  positions  of  honor  and  trust.  The  state,  problems 
of  the  confederation  of  states,  the  Bavarian  government,  duties  and  rights  of 
a  citizen  of  the  state,  positions  of  honor  and  trust.  The  German  empire, 
foundation  and  constitution,  problems  of  the  empire,  social  laws,  trade  and 
commerce  in  modern  times,  German  colonies,  value  of  consuls  in  foreign 
lands. 

e.  Gymnastics,  games  and  swimming.  Gymnastics,  with  games  and 
swimming,  aims  to  rectify  the  one-sided  muscle  development,  which  is  often 
acquired  by  unskilled  labor,  and  developed  into  awkwardness  and  clumsiness. 
Agility  and  skill  is  developed,  and  a  sense  for  order  and  relationship  to  the 
whole  fostered.  It  shall  awaken  healthy  ambition,  exercise  the  will  and  self- 
discipline. 

Classes  I  and  II.  In  the  winter  semester  will  be  given  exercises  on  appa- 
ratus, such  as  wands,  dumbbells,  ladders,  horizontal  and  parallel  bars,  as  well 
as  weight  lifting.  The  work  is  to  be  given  on  a  gradually  advancing  scale. 
During  the  winter  semester  athletic  games  are  emphasized,  as  baseball,  etc. 
After  a  course  of  dry  swimming,  which  is  given  in  the  gymnasium,  methodical 
instruction  is  given  at  the  different  bathing  places  of  the  city. 

f.  Manual  training,  with  drawing.  Instruction  in  manual  training 
develops  appreciation  of  manual  work  and  the  joy  in  craftsmanship,  and 
brings,  as  far  as  possible,  unskilled  laborers  or  those  without  any  occupation 
into  the  class  of  skilled  labor.  Above  all,  it  aims  at  exactness  in  the  work, 
helps  the  pupil  to  understand  the  raw  materials  most  frequently  used  in 
industry,  as  wood  and  iron,  and  the  use  of  tools.  Instruction  in  drawing  is 
closely  connected  with  manual  training.     For  those  pupils  who  have  not  had 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  207 

instruction  in  drawing  before  entering  the  continuation  school,  a  short  intro- 
ductory course  is  provided  which  familiarizes  the  pupil  with  the  use  of 
ruler,  angle  and  drawing  instruments.  The  subject  matter  includes  straight- 
line  plane  figures  and  ornamental  figures  with  circular  forms.  Working 
drawings  of  shop  products  are  also  made.  Sometimes  scale  drawings  are 
undertaken.  The  shop  projects  are  sometimes  made  from  blue-prints.  Those 
pupils  who  have  had  manual  training  in  the  last  year  of  the  grade  school 
are  given  training  in  both  wood  and  iron,  and  therefore  change  workshops 
after  the  first  year.  All  other  pupils  are  taught  in  only  one  line  for  two 
years,  parents  making  the  selection. 

Woodwork:  Class  I.  Raw  material  in  its  essential  characteristics.  Tools 
for  clamping,  measuring  and  working.  Processes  of  sawing,  planing,  drilling, 
chiseling,  etc. ;  making  of  exercises  and  simple,  useful  articles.  Class  II.  The 
most  important  European  and  foreign  kinds  of  wood ;  defects  and  diseases 
of  wood;  wood  as  an  article  of  commerce.  The  common  wood  joints.  Table 
and  chair  joints.     Simple,  useful  articles. 

Metalii'ork:  Class  I.  Raw  materials,  production,  the  most  important 
characteristics.  Tools  for  clamping,  measuring  and  working.  Processes  of 
marking,  cutting,  filing,  planing,  thread-cutting,  bending,  drilling,  etc.  Making 
of  exercises  and  simple,  useful  articles.  Class  II.  Further  consideration  of 
raw  materials.  Processes :  More  advanced  work  than  in  Class  I,  then  thread- 
cutting,  cold  bending,  riveting,  grooving,  soldering,  etc.  Simple,  useful 
articles. 

B.     Alternate-week  Courses 

1.  The  Beverly  Industrial  School,  Beverly,  Massachusetts, 
offers,  in  cooperation  with  the  United  Shoe  Machinery  Company. 
a  course  of  instruction  in  the  machinist  trade.  The  students  spend 
alternate  weeks  in  school  and  factory.  The  school-day  is  8  hours, 
with  Saturday  holiday,  and  no  home  lessons.  Factory  hours  and 
discipline  are  the  same  as  for  regular  employees. 

Fifty  students  are  enrolled  and  are  divided  into  two  groups.  The 
machinist-instructor  for  each  group  teaches  that  group  in  the  factory 
one  week,  and  the  next  week  teaches  the  drawing,  mathematics  and 
science  to  the  same  group  in  school.  Regular  high-school  teachers 
also  give  instruction  in  English,  civics,  industrial  economics,  business 
forms  and  practices,  etc. 

In  the  factory  the  student  works  on  the  regular  factory  prod- 
ucts —  shoe  machinery  —  the  raw  material  being  furnished  by  the 
factory.  The  product  of  the  student's  work  is  inspected  by  regular 
factory  inspectors  and  is  put  into  the  company's  stock.  One-half 
the  regular  piece-price  for  all  his  product  that  passes  inspection  is 
paid  to  each  student  by  the  factory ;  the  other  half  is  devoted  to  the 
maintenance  of  the  shop. 


208  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

The  factory  furnishes  the  shop  equipment  and  pays  the  salary 
of  the  shop  instructor  while  he  is  in  the  shop.  In  case  a  profit  should 
accrue  to  the  factory  from  the  sale  of  products  made  by  students, 
over  and  above  the  cost  of  maintaining  the  factory  shop,  such  excess 
profit  is  to  be  devoted  to  the  support  of  the  school. 

The  school  was  started  in  August,  1909.  For  admission,  pupils 
must  be  at  least  fourteen  years  of  age  and  must  have  completed  the 
sixth  grade.  The  minimum  age  for  admission  will  probably  soon  be 
raised  to  sixteen  years  because  of  the  immaturity  of  the  boys  of 
fourteen  and  fifteen.  No  apprenticeship  agreement  or  indenture  is 
made.  The  school  is  under  subsidy  of  the  State,  which  pays  one- 
half  the  annual  cost  to  the  city. 

2.  The  cooperative  course  at  Fitchburg,  Massachusetts,  is  a 
four-year  high-school  course,  the  last  three  years  being  arranged  so 
that  each  pupil  spends  alternate  weeks  in  factory  and  school.  The 
first  year  of  the  course  is  spent  entirely  in  school.  For  admission, 
students  must  be  graduates  of  the  grammar  school. 

Seven  firms,  manufacturers  of  machinery,  originally  entered  into 
the  plan,  requiring  regular  three-year  apprenticeship  indentures  to 
be  made  with  the  students,  by  which  they  are  to  receive  for  the  shop- 
work  10  cents  an  hour  the  first  year,  11  cents  the  second,  and  12^ 
cents  the  third  year.  Later  the  school  authorities  threw  the  indus- 
trial course  open  to  all  who  could  satisfy  the  entrance  requirements, 
no  matter  at  what  kind  of  work  they  were  engaged  the  week  out  of 
school.  Most  of  the  boys  are  paired  in  such  a  way  that  when  one 
of  the  pair  is  at  school  the  other  takes  his  place  at  the  factory.  But 
in  some  cases  employers  are  willing  to  get  along  without  a  substitute 
for  the  week  spent  by  the  boy  in  school. 

All  the  boys  work  in  the  summer.  The  school  year  is  20  weeks 
in  length.  Twenty  students  are  enrolled  in  the  first  year  of  the 
course,  20  in  the  second,  and  20  in  the  third.  The  instructor  in 
charge  of  the  course  spends  from  5  to  7  hours  a  week  visiting  the 
students  in  the  factories.  Two  of  the  students  are  sons  of  union 
men. 

The  schoolwork  is  applied  as  closely  as  possible  to  industrial 
needs.  It  includes  English,  current  events  and  industrial  history, 
arithmetic,  simple  algebra,  geometry  and  trigonometry,  mechanism 
of  machines,  physics  and  chemistry,  commercial  geography,  civics 
and  American  history,  business  methods,  drawing.  In  science  and 
mathematics  applications  are  taught  rather  than  theory. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  209 

II.    Separate  High  Schools  for  Technical  and  Manual 
Training  Courses 

In  the  matter  of  separate  buildings  for  technical  and  manual 
training  courses  in  high  school,  present  practice  shows  many  varia- 
tions. In  the  seven  cities  mentioned  below  there  seems  to  be  on  the 
whole  a  tendency  to  make  a  distinction  between  manual  training 
courses  and  technical  courses,  and  to  offer  the  former  in  all  high 
schools,  but  to  give  the  latter  in  separate  schools  only.  This  ten- 
dency seems  to  be  based  on  the  view  that  technical  courses,  since 
they  aim  definitely  at  vocational  training  and  require  for  the  shop- 
work  a  larger  portion  of  the  school  time  than  manual  training 
courses,  should  receive  the  benefit  of  a  school  atmosphere  given  over 
largely  and  definitely  to  vocational  training,  and  that  such  an 
atmosphere  can  be  best  developed  in  a  separate  technical  school. 
Manual  training,  on  the  other  hand,  since  it  aims  at  the  general 
education  of  the  individual  through  the  hand,  regardless  of  his  voca- 
tional future,  should  be  given  in  all  schools. 

1.  In  St.  Louis  manual  training  is  offered  in  all  high  schools. 
No  distinctly  technical  courses  are  offered. 

2.  In  Chicago  a  four-year  course  in  manual  or  technical  train- 
ing is  given  in  each  of  three  high  schools.  In  each  of  the  remaining 
high  schools  it  is  planned  to  offer  two  years  of  manual  training, 
although  this  plan  has  not  yet  been  completely  carried  out.  Two- 
year  vocational  courses  are  offered  in  all  high  schools  for  the  first 
time  in  1910-11. 

3.  In  Cleveland  all  manual  training  of  high-school  grade  is 
being  concentrated  in  one  or  two  buildings,  where  it  is  being  inten- 
sified, one-half  to  two-thirds  of  the  school  time  being  allotted  to 
shop  and  drawing.  The  manual  training  formerly  given  in  other 
high  schools  is  being  discontinued,  on  the  ground  that  sufficient  time 
can  not  be  given  to  it  in  academic  high  schools  to  produce  satis- 
factory results.33 

4.  In  Boston  only  one  high  school  offers  four  years  of  manual 
training,  and  this  school  is  shortly  to  be  transformed  into  a  dis- 
tinctly technical  high  school  for  boys,  offering  preparation  for  indus- 
trial pursuits  but  no  preparation  for  college  or  higher  technical  insti- 
tutions.   Two  high  schools  offer  afternoon  industrial  courses.    Five 

83  Report  of  the  Educational  Commission,   1906. 
15 


210  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

outlying  high  schools  offer  not  more  than  two  years  of  manual  train- 
ing. Six  academic  high  schools  centrally  located  offer  no  manual 
training.  The  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls  is  a  dis- 
tinctly technical  school,  in  a  separate  building,  and  offers  no  prepa- 
ration for  college.  The  experience  of  Boston  shows,  according  to 
a  statement  of  the  superintendent,  that  courses  in  domestic  science 
and  in  household  arts  do  not  attract  nearly  so  many  students  when 
given  in  the  regular  academic  high  school  as  when  given  in  a  separate 
high  school  as  at  present. 

5.  In  Newton,  Massachusetts,  there  are  two  high  schools,  one  a 
technical  high  school  for  boys  and  girls,  the  other  an  academic  high 
school  without  manual  training  equipment,  and  located  near  the 
technical  high  school.  Students  in  the  academic  high  school  may 
go  to  the  technical  high  school  for  optional  courses  in  manual  train- 
ing. 

6.  In  New  York  city  (all  boroughs)  all  but  three  of  the  nine- 
teen high  schools  offer  the  general  high-school  course,  four  years 
in  duration,  with  electives  in  commercial  subjects  in  the  third  and 
fourth  years.  Of  the  three  high  schools  not  offering  the  general 
course,  two  are  exclusively  commercial  high  schools,  for  boys  only, 
and  one  is  devoted  solely  to  manual  training  for  boys.  In  the  latter 
school  a  four-year  industrial  course  is  offered,  in  which  a  large  part 
of  the  time  is  given  to  shopwork.  Five  high  schools  offer  only  the 
general  course.  Eleven  high  schools  offer,  in  addition  to  the  general 
course,  a  three-year  commercial  course,  a  three-year  technical  course 
for  girls,  or  a  four-year  manual  training  course  for  boys. 

7.  Cincinnati  affords  a  very  interesting  organization  of  technical, 
manual  training  and  academic  courses  all  in  the  same  high-school 
building.  There  are  three  high  schools  in  the  city.  Two  of  these 
offer  for  the  first  time  in  1910-11  eight  courses  of  study  divided 
into  two  groups : 

(1)  Academic  Courses,  including  the  usual  General,  Classical, 
Domestic  Science  and  Manual  Training  Courses. 

(2)  Technical  Courses,  including  the  Commercial,  Boys'  Indus- 
trial, Girls'  Art  and  Girls'  Industrial  Courses. 

The  third  high  school  offers  at  present  only  the  General  and 
Classical  Courses. 

The  first  group  of  courses  provides  general  culture  and  prepares 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  211 

for   colleges   and   professional   schools.     The   second   group   leads 
directly  to  vocations. 

The  Cincinnati  school  authorities  recognize  the  objections  which 
can  be  raised  to  the  plan  of  having  technical  courses  in  the  same 
building  with  academic  courses,  and  under  the  same  principal  and 
teaching  force.  The  following  quotation  from  the  Eightieth  Annual 
Report  of  the  Superintendent  shows  that  definite  steps  are  being 
taken  in  the  organization  of  the  high  schools  to  overcome  these 
objections : 

1.  The  principal,  the  administrative  officer  of  the  whole  schooi,  and  in 
authority  over  the  heads  of  departments. 

2.  Heads  of  departments.  The  Boys'  Technical  or  Industrial  Course, 
the  Girls'  Domestic  Arts  Course,  and  the  Commercial  Course  should  each 
have  a  head.  To  the  head  of  a  department  each  student  in  that  department 
would  report.  He  would  be  the  adviser  also  of  the  teachers  of  the  special 
staff  (in  conjunction  with  the  principal)  and  would  be  supervisor  of  all 
work  of  the  group  of  students  in  his  department.  It  would  be  the  duty  of 
the  head  of  the  department,  say  of  the  Commercial  Course,  to  keep  in  touch 
with  business  interests  in  the  city,  to  keep  the  course  of  study  abreast  of  the 
needs  of  business  houses,  and  to  suggest  suitable  positions  for  his  students. 

3.  The  staff  of  teachers  and  instructors.  These  should  be  organized 
in  departments  under  the  above  heads,  and  when  appointed  it  should  be  with 
reference  to  their  fitness  for  the  special  department.  If  a  teacher  conducts 
classes  in  two  departments,  the  work  done  in  each  department  should  be 
under  supervision  of  its  respective  head.  Teachers  not  in  sympathy  with 
a  commercial  or  industrial  course  should  not  be  permitted  to  teach  students 
in  such  a  course  in  any  subject.  This  is  highly  important  if  the  courses  are 
to  preserve  their  integrity  and  are  not  to  be  made  a  mere  blind  or  decoy  to 
lure  students  into  other  courses.  If  we  offer  a  commercial  course,  the  course 
must  be  what  it  pretends  to  be,  and  it  must  be  taught  by  expert  teachers 
who  believe  in  it,  and  there  must  be  no  proselyting  into  other  courses. 


212  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER  VIII 

INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  AND  COURSES  IN  OTHER 
CITIES  (Concluded) 

SHOP    METHODS.      ACADEMIC    COURSES    AND    DRAWING.     WAGES 
OF   FORMER    STUDENTS 


The  preceding  chapter  attempts,  among  other  things,  to  show  the 
degree  in  which  the  particular  schools  and  courses  described  may 
be  regarded  as  "  industrial "  in  character,  as  distinguished  from 
schools  of  the  conventional  manual  training  type,  (a)  by  giving 
lists  of  shop  products,  (b)  by  stating  the  use  to  which  the  products 
were  put,  (c)  by  giving  the  portion  of  school  time  which  is  devoted 
to  the  shop  and  to  the  academic  work. 

In  this  chapter  the  industrial  character  of  some  of  these  schools 
is  still  further  shown  by  giving  under  I,  below,  a  description  of 
methods  used  in  shopwork,  and  under  II,  some  outlines  of  academic 
courses  closely  related  to  shop  and  industrial  needs,  together  with 
a  list  of  reference  and  text-books.  Under  III  statistics  are  given 
on  the  wages  of  students  from  eight  trade  and  technical  schools 
compared  with  the  wages  of  persons  trained  only  in  the  industries. 

I.     Industrial  Methods  in  Shopwork 

In  a  number  of  the  intermediate  industrial  schools,  special  effort 
is  made  to  introduce  "  industrial  "  methods  and  standards  in  the 
shopwork.  Such  methods  include  (a)  the  making  of  jigs  to  facil- 
itate manufacture  and  to  secure  uniformity  in  the  product,  (b) 
division  of  labor  to  increase  the  skill  and  speed  of  the  individual 
and  the  efficiency  of  the  working  force,  (c)  the  appointing  of  stu- 
dents as  group  foremen  and  room  foremen  to  develop  leadership 
and  organizing  ability,  (d)  the  use  of  cost  and  time  cards  and  the 
assigning  of  a  wage-rate  for  students'  work,  and  (e)  the  use  of  a 
checking  system  to  fix  responsibility  for  poor  work.  Especially 
good  examples  of  the  use  of  some  or  all  of  the  above  shop  methods 
may  be  seen  in  the  Factory  School,  Rochester,  New  York,  in  the 
Vocational  School,  Albany,  New  York,  in  the  Trades  School,  Colum- 
bus, Ohio,  in  the  Industrial  School,  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts, 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  213 

and  in  the  optional  industrial  courses  in  grammar  schools,  Boston, 
Massachusetts.  Detailed  descriptions  are  here  given  of  the  methods 
used  in  the  Boston  and  New  Bedford  schools. 

1.  In  the  Boston  grammar  school  industrial  courses,1  pasteboard 
boxes  were  made. 

The  method  employed  was  as  follows :  First  a  sample  box  was  studied 
and  careful  note  was  taken  of  its  use,  of  the  material  of  which  it  was  made, 
and  of  the  details  of  its  construction.  Especial  attention  was  called  to  the 
dimensions  and  to  the  need  of  obtaining  accurate  results,  in  order  that  all 
boxes  might  serve  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  intended  and  also  be  alike. 

Each  boy  then  made  one  entire  box,  drawing,  cutting,  scoring,  gluing, 
staying  corners,  pasting. 

Next,  by  a  brief  talk,  and  with  necessary  demonstration,  an  explanation 
was  given  of  the  greater  economy  of  employing  "  industrial  methods." 

Jigs  were  made  for  facilitating  some  of  the  operations  and  for  securing 
greater  uniformity  in  the  product.  The  class  was  organized  into  different 
groups  of  from  two  to  six  boys  each,  each  group  performing  one  of  the 
several  operations  involved  in  the  making  of  the  box  or  the  cover.  There 
were  the  box  cutters,  cover  cutters,  stayers,  pasters,  fitters  and  gluers.  There 
were  those  who  assembled,  inspected,  packed  and  counted  the  boxes,  and 
there  were  the  assistant  teachers  —  foremen  in  embryo. 

Of  course,  this  was  not  all  done  in  one  lesson.  By  the  time  750  of  these 
boxes  were  made  and  packed,  ready  for  the  supply  team,  the  boys  had 
gained  at  least  a  glimmer  of  light  on  five  points  of  superiority  of  this,  the 
industrial  method,  over  the  method  first  employed :  First,  that  there  was 
greater  economy  in  the  use  of  material.  Second,  that  much  time  was  saved, 
since  it  was  not  necessary  to  lay  aside  one  tool  and  hunt  for  another  at  the 
completion  of  a  single  operation.  Third,  that  the  skill  increased  very  rapidly 
by  performing  the  same  operation  many  times.  Fourth,  that  a  standard  of 
accomplishment  in  a  given  time  was  established,  below  which  no  self-respect- 
ing boy  wished  to  fall.  Fifth,  that  a  "  good  "  box  could  not  be  produced  if 
any  of  the  group  of  boys  did  "  bad  "  work. 

In  passing,  I  must  note  and  answer  one  objection  which  some  advocates 
of  "  educational "  manual  training  will  make,  namely,  that  the  frequent 
repetition  of  the  same  movement  is  not  educational,  since  it  becomes  prac- 
tically automatic  —  a  matter  of  the  spinal  cord.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the  boys 
show  an  ever-increasing  interest  and  delight  in  their  work  as  they  become 
more  and  more  skillful,  for  there  is  a  keen  joy  in  mere  accomplishment 
which  is  by  no  means  a  matter  of  the  spinal  cord,  but  of  an  intelligence 
which  is  much  higher.  It  should  also  be  noted  in  this  connection  that  from 
time  to  time  the  groups  were  changed,  so  that  in  the  end  all  the  boys  had 
performed  several,  if  not  all,  of  the  different  operations. 

1  The  description  here  given  is  taken  from  an  article  prepared  by  Frank  M.  Leavitt, 
formerly  Assistant  Supervisor  of  Manual  Training,  and  quoted  in  the  report  of  the  Super- 
intendent of  Schools,  1908. 


214  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

The  second  project  was  a  box  smaller  and  more  finely  constructed  than 
the  first.    Sixteen  hundred  of  these  were  made. 

In  speaking  of  the  methods  used  in  making  the  later  projects,  it  is  only 
necessary  to  note  two  points  in  which  they  differed  from  those  first  employed: 
First,  in  the  earlier  project  the  groups  were  chosen  with  reference  to  the 
ability  of  individual  boys  and  the  difficulty  of  the  several  operations.  In 
the  latter  the  groups  were  formed  by  taking  the  boys  in  order,  just  as  they 
came,  and  a  "  foreman  "  was  appointed  for  each  group. 

Second,  a  system  of  "  check "  was  introduced,  which  made  it  possible 
to  trace  poor  work  to  its  author  —  thus  fixing  responsibility.  After  the  com- 
pletion of  the  second  project  some  calculations  were  made  to  ascertain  the 
increase  of  efficiency,  and  it  was  found  to  be  about  400  per  cent. 

It  is  rather  early  to  speak  with  certainty  about  the  interest  with  which 
the  boys  will  follow  this  work,  but  the  indications  are  all  extremely  favorable. 
The  boys  do  not  seem  to  object  to  giving  their  work  to  the  city,  but  rather 
appear  to  be  pleased  that  they  can  contribute  something  to  its  support,  and 
that,  in  these  days,  is  of  no  small  consequence.  Interest  seems  to  be  awak- 
ened and  held  by  the  mere  productive  activity  —  by  the  industrial  processes 
themselves,  and  it  has  not  been  necessary,  thus  far,  to  bring  in  the  motive 
of  ownership,  which  is  prominent  in  the  regular  manual-training  work.  The 
boys  were  interested  when  the  supply  team  called  to  transfer  their  boxes  to 
the  supply  rooms.  Some  rivalry  has  been  noted  between  different  groups, 
and  some  boys  have  asked  to  be  allowed  to  work  at  home. 

2.  At  the  New  Bedford,  Massachusetts,  Industrial  School2  the 
shopwork  aims  to  produce,  among  other  things,  what  may  be  called 
"  a  constructive  state  of  mind,  by  putting  the  pupil  repeatedly 
through  the  whole  process  of  planning,  expressing  and  constructing 
some  piece  of  work  which  is  to  be  used,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
develop  proper  shop  habits."  The  job-shop  is  taken  as  the  general 
model  for  the  shopwork,  the  academic  work  being  largely  determined 
by  and  centered  about  the  work  on  a  particular  job. 

Orders  are  sent  into  the  office  from  the  head  of  any  department.  In 
the  office  each  job  is  entered  on  a  job  card.  On  this  card  is  placed  the  name 
and  office  number  of  the  job.  The  shop  instructor  takes  this  card  to  his 
office  and  enters  on  it  the  name  and  number  of  the  boy  to  whom  he  assigns 
the  job.  The  boy  then  rings  in  his  time  on  the  time  clock.  Since  the  card 
shows  from  what  department  the  order  came,  he  goes  to  that  instructor  to 
get  further  details,  which  are  intentionally  given  orally.  He  then  goes  to 
the  drawing  room,  presents  his  job  card  and  is  given  a  check,  a  piece  of 
drawing  paper.  On  this  he  draws  the  work,  and  then  takes  the  drawing  to 
the  man  who  gave  the  order.  If  all  right,  from  the  standpoint  of  the  man 
who  wants  the  article,  he  takes  his  drawing  to  the  shop  instructor  to  be 

2  The  description  here  given  is  taken  from  an  article  by  the  director,  Charles  R. 
Allen,  published  in  Bulletin  No.  10,  National  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Industrial 
Education. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  215 

O.  K'd.  Then  he  gets  out  specifications  and  stock  and  cost  figures,  or  any 
other  calculations  which  may  be  needed,  on  the  same  sheet  as  the  drawing. 
When  these  are  passed  by  the  academic  teacher,  he  reports  at  the  shop, 
entering  on  his  sheet  time  spent  in  this  work  as  shown  by  his  card. 

He  then  makes  the  article  or  does  the  work,  gets  it  passed  by  the 
instructor  and  returns  his  drawing  sheet  to  the  drawing  supply  room.  There 
he  writes  a  report  on  the  work.  When  this  is  accepted  by  the  English 
teacher  the  job  is  completed,  and  he  rings  out  on  the  job  card,  turning  that 
and  the  article  (if  possible)  into  the  shop  office. 

Thus  in  this  process  the  boy  has  planned  and  carried  out  a  definite  piece 
of  work,  and  has  incidentally  got  his  English,  mathematics  and  some  ideas 
of  economy,  has  been  required  to  carry  through  a  number  of  steps  in  proper 
order  and  has  gone  through  the  whole  process  of  production. 

II.  Drawing  and  Academic  Courses  Related  to  Industrial 

Needs 

Practically  all  the  industrial  schools  visited  by  the  committee's 
representative  are  endeavoring  to  organize  the  academic  instruction 
around  industrial  needs.  Few  of  the  schools,  however,  have  gone 
far  enough  in  these  efforts  to  have  definite  and  complete  outlines 
of  such  work.  This  is  due,  in  part,  to  the  lack  of  appropriate  text 
and  reference  books,  and  to  a  lack  of  time  in  the  early  stages  of 
these  experimental  schools  when  many  things  need  to  be  done. 

Twelve  schools  were  found  which  have  developed  "  industrial- 
ized "  courses  in  drawing  and  academic  subjects  to  such  an  extent 
that  outlines  or  descriptions  can  be  here  given  which  may  be  sug- 
gestive to  others  interested  in  this  matter.  These  courses  are 
described  below,  classified  with  respect  to  subject  matter.  In  addi- 
tion, courses  in  industrial  history  and  civics  in  the  continuation 
schools  of  Munich,  Germany,  are  outlined  under  "  history."  A  list 
of  reference  and  text-books,  obtained  from  instructors  in  industrial 
schools  in  this  country,  is  given  at  the  end  of  the  section. 

Mathematics 

The  following  books  and  courses  in  mathematics  have  been 
brought  out  in  close  connection  with  trade  and  technical  schools  in 
order  to  supply  the  demand  for  mathematical  subject  matter  closely 
related  to  shop  needs. 

1.  Shop  Mathematics,3  by  E.  E.  Holton,  is  based  on  the  author's 
twelve  years'  experience  as  draftsman  and  shop  foreman  and  on 

3  Published  by  The  Taylor-Holden  Co.,   Springfield,  Massachusetts. 


216  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

twelve  years'  experience  in  teaching  in  trade  and  technical  schools. 
The  chief  feature  of  the  book  is  the  38  lists  of  some  600  problems 
related  to  machine-shop  practice.  No  attempt  is  made  to  explain 
mathematical  theory  or  principles.  Rules  and  formulas  are  given 
under  each  subject,  with  some  explanation  of  their  meaning  and  use. 
The  book  contains  211  pages,  with  over  62  illustrations  of  machines 
and  apparatus,  a  list  of  56  formulas,  and  a  table  of  natural  trig- 
onometric functions.  It  is,  perhaps,  best  adapted  for  use  in  technical 
high  schools,  after  two  years  or  more  of  mathematics  have  been 
completed. 

2.  A  book  of  problems  intended  to  supplement  the  usual  algebra 
and  plane  and  solid  geometry  of  secondary  schools,  and  the  trig- 
onometry of  right  triangles,  has  been  worked  out  in  the  mathe- 
matic  classes  of  Lewis  Institute,  Chicago,  by  Herbert  E.  Cobb,  one 
of  the  instructors.  The  book  is  at  present,  November,  1910,  in 
manuscript  form,  and  contains  over  1,200  problems,  from  one-half 
to  two-thirds  of  which  relate  to  laboratory  and  shopwork  and  engi- 
neering formulas.  On  the  mathematical  side  these  applied  problems 
require  the  use  of  arithmetic,  algebra,  trigonometry  of  right  tri- 
angles and  a  small  amount  of  plane  geometry.  Considerable  use  is 
made  of  the  graph  in  the  solution  of  the  applied  problems.  The 
remaining  problems  are  of  the  geometry-algebra  type,  intended  to 
interweave  those  subjects.  Explanatory  solutions  of  problems  are 
given,  and  frequent  explanations  of  the  principles  of  science  with 
some  experimental  work.  The  meaning  and  use  of  formulas  are 
presented.  Since  the  book  is  intended  to  be  supplementary  to  the 
regular  work  in  mathematics  very  little  explanation  is  made  of  the 
mathematical  principles  involved  in  the  problems. 

3.  Shop  Problems  in  Mathematics,4  by  Breckenridge,  Mersereau 
and  Moore,  is  intended  to  provide  the  mathematics  needed  in  the 
usual  four-year  high-school  course  in  manual  training.  It  should 
be  useful  as  a  handbook  in  the  shops  or  as  a  supplementary  book 
in  the  mathematics  classroom  throughout  the  four  years.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  shop  problems,  and  the  rules  and  formulas  required,  some 
80  pages  are  given  to  a  review  of  calculation,  and  to  an  explanation 
of  the  mathematical  principles  involved  in  the  use  of  formulas  and 
in  the  trigonometric  solution  of  triangles.  The  book  contains  278 
pages,  with  1 62  figures  and  illustrations  of  machines  and  apparatus. 

*  Published  by  Ginn  &  Co. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  217 

4.  The  following  course  in  mathematics  is  offered  in  the  Cleve- 
land Technical  High  School. 

Secondary  School  Mathematics,5  Book  I,  by  Short  and  Elson, 
is  used  in  the  first  year.  This  book  covers  about  a  half-year  of 
algebra  and  a  half-year  of  geometry,  with  some  arithmetic  inter- 
woven. Nearly  all  of  the  ten  chapters  contain  supplementary 
lists  of  applied  problems  related  to  the  science  work  of  boys  and 
girls. 

Secondary  School  Mathematics,  Book  II,  by  Short  and  Elson, 
is  used  in  the  second  year.  This  book  contains  the  second  half- 
year's  work  in  both  geometry  and  algebra.  Supplementary  lists 
of  applied  problems  for  boys,  at  the  end  of  the  chapters,  contain 
problems  on  pulleys,  gears,  speeds,  roof  trusses,  weights  and 
forms  of  nuts  and  bolts,  strength  of  materials,  stresses  on  beams, 
tapers,  etc.  The  lists  of  applied  problems  for  girls  are  mainly 
arithmetical  and  are  based  on  the  cost  of  materials  for  garments, 
the  preparation  (cutting)  of  materials,  the  percentage  composi- 
tion of  foods,  etc. 

The  mathematics  of  the  third  year,  for  boys,  is  machine-shop 
mathematics,  and  is  studied  in  the  machine  shop,  instead  of  in 
the  mathematics  classroom.  For  this  course  Holton's  Shop 
Mathematics6  is  used. 

For  the  fourth  year  the  customary  course  in  advanced  or  col- 
lege algebra  will  probably  be  offered. 

5.  The  Manhattan  Trade  School  for  Girls,  New  York  city,  has 
developed  a  course  in  industrial  arithmetic,  published  in  book  form 
under  the  authorship  of  Mary  L.  Gardner  and  Cleo  Murtland.  The 
book  contains  53  pages  of  problems  classified  with  reference  to  the 
trades  taught  in  the  school,  together  with  problems  bearing  on  the 
textile  industries.  No  attempt  is  made  in  the  book  to  explain  the' 
arithmetical  principles  involved  in  the  problems. 

6.  The  Milwaukee  School  of  Trades  and  the  Cincinnati  Con- 
tinuation School  are  developing  courses  in  mathematics  covering  the 
mensuration,  the  algebra  and  the  trigonometry  needed  in  the  trades 
taught.  In  the  Cincinnati  school  considerable  effort  is  made  to  give 
the  student  an  understanding  of  the  mathematical  principles  involved 
in  the  rules  and  formulas  used  in  the  shops. 

B  Published  by  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co. 

0  See  p.  215  for  statement  concerning  this  book. 


218  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

7.  Hundreds  of  problems,  closely  related  to  shop  needs,  have 
been  prepared  for  the  apprentices  of  the  New  York  Central  Lines.7 
Some  of  the  problems  are  general  in  character  and  are  to  be  solved 
by  all  apprentices ;  others  are  related  to  a  particular  trade  and  are 
to  be  solved  by  the  apprentices  in  that  trade  only. 

The  body  of  the  course  is  arithmetic,  including  mensuration  of 
plane  and  solid  figures,  but  some  attempt  is  made  to  introduce  alge- 
bra, in  a  simple  way,  in  connection  with  formulas.  Problems  on 
levers,  gears,  pulleys  and  strength  of  materials  are  also  given. 

The  course  is  essentially  a  problem  course,  all  theory,  principles 
and  rules  being  introduced  through  problems  needed  for  solution  in 
the  shops.    Practically  all  problems  are  clothed  in  shop  language. 

Drawing 

1.  In  the  New  York  Central  Apprenticeship  system  a  course  in 
drawing  is  provided  for  each  trade,  specially  adapted  to  the  needs 
of  that  trade.  No  preliminary  geometrical  exercises  are  used.  The 
drawings  are  entirely  of  objects  used  by  the  apprentices  in  the  shops, 
geometrical  principles  being  introduced  when  needed.  Lettering  is 
taught  incidentally  in  connection  with  the  title  on  the  sheet.  Blue- 
print instruction  sheets  are  used,  containing  general  directions,  as 
well  as  specific  directions  for  the  individual  drawings. 

2.  In  the  High  School  of  Practical  Arts  for  Girls,  Boston,  Mas- 
sachusetts, drawing  is  closely  related  to  the  shopwork.  Before  a 
garment  or  hat  is  made  in  the  shops,  a  design  or  working-drawing, 
giving  full  details,  is  made  in  the  drawing-room,  due  consideration 
being  given  to  the  figure  of  the  girl  for  whom  the  article  is  intended, 
and  to  the  quality  and  kind  of  material  to  be  used.  After  the  article 
is  completed  in  the  shops,  a  final  drawing  is  made,  similar  in  charac- 
ter to  the  designs  in  fashion-plates  and  magazines.  The  artistic  fin- 
ish of  these  final  drawings  is  noteworthy. 

In  domestic  science  the  drawing  is  based  on  house-building,  fur- 
nishings, decorations,  etc. 

History 

1.  The  course  in  the  history  of  boot  and  shoe  making,  outlined 
below,8  was  given  in  Brockton,  Massachusetts,  to  fourth-year  high- 

7  A  full  description  of  this  system  of  apprenticeship,  showing  methods  of  instruction, 
may  be  found  in  the  American  Engineer  and  Railroad  Journal,  June,  July,  September, 
October,   November,  1907. 

8  The  outline  was  furnished  by  the  instructor,  Miss  Blanche  Evans  Hazard. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  219 

school  students,  three  periods  a  week  for  the  regular  school  year. 
All  students  in  the  course  had  already  taken  one  year  in  ancient 
history,  one  year  in  mediaeval,  and  one  in  English  history7,  and  were 
taking  American  history,  two  periods  a  week,  along  with  the  indus- 
trial history. 

Footwear  —  of  primitive  people  in  all  times  and  places.     Sandals  and  mocca- 
sins.    Materials  and  form. 

Footwear  —  of   civilized   nations    in    ancient    times.     Orientals,    Greeks    and 
Romans. 

Medieval  Industries 

Medieval  manorial  life.  Manors  as  self-sufficing  communities  com- 
pared with  New  England  farms  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Shoes  made 
in  the  houses  or  from  leather  tanned  on  the  manor.  A  time  of  household 
economy. 

Rise  of  towns.  Markets  and  merchant  guilds  for  trade.  Masters, 
apprentices  and  journeymen  for  handicrafts.  Craft  guilds  and  their 
organization. 

Thomas  the  Tanner,  and  Samuel  the  Saddler,  as  topics  for  original 
stories.     Illustrations  of  medieval  footwear. 

Period  of  town  economy. 

Modern  Industrial  Life  in  the  Fifteenth  to  the  Eighteenth  Century 

Influence  of  foreign  intercourse. 

Influence  of  new  colonial  possessions  of  Europe  as  markets  for  home 
products. 

Mercantile  theories  and  their  effect  upon  English  industries.  Large 
amounts  of  capital  in  hands  of  traders  without  technical  training,  who 
ventured  to  secure  and  hold  distant  markets  for  products  made  at  home. 
Therefore,  rise  of  domestic  system,  and  a  time  of  national  economy. 

Development  of  better  means  of  communication,  i.  e.,  canals,  roads 
and  ships. 

Modern  Industry  in  the  Nineteenth  Century 

Conditions  in  England,  France,  Germany  and  New  England  in  1815, 
1850  and  1900,  showing  the  transition  from  the  domestic  to  the  factory 
system  of  production  during  these  centuries. 

Illustrations  taken  from  the  silk  and  linen  industries  in  Germany  and 
Italy,  the  woolen  industry  in  England  and  the  boot  and  shoe  industry  in 
New  England. 

Factory  system  slow  to  develop  in  European  countries,  except  in  cases 
of  new  industries. 

Discuss  low  price  of  labor  there  versus  high  price  of  machinery. 
Discuss,  also,  high  prices  versus  high  cost  of  labor. 

American-made  machinery  and  American  factory  organization  being 
introduced. 


220  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

History  of  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Industry  in  the  United  States 

Lynn,  Randolph  and  North  Bridgewater  taken  as  typical  centers. 

Shoemaking  in  New  England  farmhouses  by  fathers  and  sons,  or  by 
traveling  cobblers.     Particularly  in  Massachusetts. 

Apprentices  in  the  cities  and  the  country  until  1840. 

Work  of  John  Dagyr,  in  Lynn,  and  Josiah  Field,  in  Randolph.  "  Bag- 
men "  for  merchants. 

Vats  and  tanneries  in  the  New  England  towns  for  local  tanning. 

"  Ten- footers  "  —  capitalist  merchants  who  organized  the  "  putting- 
out  "  or  domestic  system. 

Development  of  the  central  shop. 

Conditions  of  market  for  boots  and  shoes  manufactured  in  New  Eng- 
land in  the  nineteenth  century. 

Farming  communities  added  shoemaking  to  their  winter's  and  sum- 
mer's work.  Army  contracts  made  a  demand  for  extra  production  in 
1812,  1848  and  1861.  Australia  and  California  provided  new  and  rela- 
tively large  demands  for  brogans  and  for  boots  when  mines  were  opened 
in  the  "  forties." 

Discussion  of  the  means  of  transportation  in  1830,  1850,  1865. 

Conditions  of  finances  in  1800,  1837,  1857  and  1873.  Effects  of  these 
financial  conditions  and  means  of  communication  upon  the  manufacture 
of  goods. 

Study  of  account  books  of  manufacturers  and  grocers  from  1800  to 
the  present  time. 

Social  and  industrial  history  of  North  Bridgewater  from  1656  to  1910. 

The  Boot  and  Shoe  Industry  Passes  Into  World  Period 

American-made  shoes  compete  with  foreign  shoes.  Hides  used  in 
America  come  from  various  parts  of  the  world. 

Spread  of  American-made  machinery.  History  of  the  United  Shoe 
Machinery  Company. 

The  making  and  winning  of  foreign  markets  by  American  boot  and 
shoe  firms.    Our  consular  service. 

Question  of  "  free  hides  "  and  "  protected  "  shoes. 

Twentieth-century  Organization  of  Shoe  Factories 

Class  visits  in  local  factories. 

Study  of  parts  and  processes.  Study  of  kinds  of  mental  and  technical 
skill  necessary  for  each  process  or  machine.  The  work  of  the  office  in 
making  up  tags,  and  of  the  shipping  room  in  marketing  the  boots. 
Advertising  departments  and  devices. 

Study  of  allied  industries  in  Brockton. 

Modern  Problems  Affecting  the  Boot  and  Shoe  Manufacture 

Trades  unions,  trusts  and  combinations,  factory  legislation  in  Massa- 
chusetts, factory  "  betterment "  or  "  social  "  schemes,  tariff,  industrial 
education  given  by  the  State. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  221 

Text  and  reference  books  used 

Thurston:    Economic  and  Industrial  History,  Part  II. 

Cunningham  :    Outlines  of  English  Industrial  History. 

Cheney:    Industrial  and  Social  History  of  England. 

Ashley:    Middle  Ages. 

Otis  Mason :  Primitive  Travel  and  Transportation,  Origin  of  Inven- 
tion, etc.,  published  by  the  Smithsonian  Institution. 

Gulick :    Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks. 

Preston  and  Dodge :    Private  Life  of  the  Romans. 

Wilkinson :    Egypt. 

Bogart :    Economic  History  of  the  United  States. 

Coman :    Industrial  History  of  the  United  States. 

Day :    History  of  Commerce. 

Johnston :  Ocean  and  Inland  Waterways,  and  Railroad  Transpor- 
tation. 

Weeden:    Social  and  Economic  History  of  New  England. 

Dewey:   History  of  Finance. 

Unwin :    Industrial  Organization. 

Schloss :    Methods  of  Industrial  Remuneration. 

Bucher :    Industrial  Evolution. 

2.  The  following  outline  of  talks  on  printing,  supplemented  by 
prescribed  reading  in  books  of  reference,  was  given  in  the  Pre- 
apprentice  School  of  Printing,  Boston,  Massachusetts,  in  the  year 
1909-10.9 

1.  Early  methods  of  keeping  records. 
Picture-writing  on  stone  and  skins. 

Invention  of  alphabet  and   writing;    scribes,  books,  parchment,  wax 

tablets,  papyrus  rolls. 
Illuminated  manuscripts. 
Invention  of  printing  by  Gutenberg. 
Facsimiles  of  early  printing. 

2.  Developing   and   spread   of   printing   over   Europe   to   England  after 

invention  of  movable  type. 
Improvement  in  typemaking. 
Improvement  in  press  ;    Franklin. 
Modern  methods  ;   cylinder  press  ;    linotype. 

3.  In  the  cooperative  course  of  the  Lewis  InstiUite,  Chicago, 
one  day  in  the  week  is  given  to  lectures  on  industrial  history  on  the 
topics  outlined  below.10  On  the  following  day  students  are  asked  to 
write  in  class  on  the  subject  of  the  lecture. 

8  Taken  from  Superintendent's  Report,  1910. 
10  The  outline  was  furnished  by  the  instructor. 


222  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Topics  in  Industrial  History 
First  Quarter  (Feudalism) 

1.  The  Manor. 

2.  The  Guilds. 

3.  The  Black  Death.    The  Peasants'  Rebellion. 

4.  Enclosures. 

5.  Break-up  of  the  Guilds.     Domestic  System. 

6.  Paternalism.     State  regulation  of  industry. 

Second  Quarter  (The  Industrial  Revolution) 

1.  Hargreaves,  Arkwright,  Crompton,  etc. 

2.  Watt  and  the  Steam  Engine. 

3.  The  Factory  System. 

4.  Laisser-faire.     Chartism.     Corn-laws. 

5.  Factory  Legislation. 

6.  Rise  of  Trade  Unions. 

Chief  reference :     Cheyney :    Industrial  and  Social  History  of  England. 

Third  Quarter  (American  History) 

1.  Industry  in  the  Colonies. 

2.  The  American  Revolution. 

3.  Development  of  Agriculture. 

4.  Slavery.     The  Cotton  Industry. 

5.  The  Civil  War. 

6.  Immigration. 

Fourth  Quarter  (Present  Aspects  in  United  States) 

1.  Historical  Sketch  of  the  American  Labor  Movement. 

2.  Haymarket  and  Homestead  Riots  (Typical  Conflicts). 

3.  Child  Labor. 

4.  Labor  Legislation. 

5.  Present  Organization  of  Labor. 

6.  The  American  Federation  of  Labor. 

Principal  references 

Coman :   Industrial  History  of  the  United  States. 

Commons :   Races  and  Immigrants  in  America. 

Adams  and  Sumner :    Labor  Problems. 

Mitchell :    Organized  Labor. 

Spargo :    Bitter  Cry  of  the  Children. 

United  States  Industrial  Commission,  Vol.  17. 

4.     Industrial  history  and  civics  in  the  Continuation  Schools  of 
Munich,  Germany.11 

n  The  outlines  are  taken  from  bulletins  published  by  the  Massachusetts  Commission  on 
Industrial  Education,   Boston. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  223 

For  mechanicians'  apprentices 

Industrialism:  History  of  manual  work  in  general;  development  of  the 
trade  of  mechanician  in  particular ;  individual  important  mechanical  con- 
trivances of  ancient  times  and  the  Middle  Ages  (building  of  the  pyramids, 
means  of  transportation,  conducting  of  sieges,  etc.)  ;  the  most  important  of 
the  ancient  masters  of  mechanics  (Chersiphron,  Metagenes,  Ktesibios,  Archi- 
medes) ;  the  development  of  mechanics  with  the  advancement  in  the  knowl- 
edge of  physical  laws  (Galilei,  Newton,  Franklin)  ;  the  development  of 
mechanics  during  the  last  century  (Watt,  Stephenson,  Fulton)  ;  the  most 
important  persons  in  the  field  of  electrotechnics  (Volta,  Galvani,  Oersted, 
Schweigger,  Ohm,  Faraday,  Gramme,  Ruhmkorff,  Siemens.  Bell,  Edison, 
Schuckert)  ;  the  chief  fields  of  practical  mechanics  in  our  own  times,  their 
gradual  dividing  up  into  special  departments  ;  the  protection  of  designs ;  allied 
industries ;  the  most  important  features  of  the  industry ;  examinations  for 
journeymen  and  master  workmen. 

Citizenship :  The  communal  organization ;  problems  of  the  community ; 
the  handworker  as  a  member  of  the  community:  Ids  rights  and  duties;  titu- 
lar officials  in  the  community ;  problems  of  states  union ;  the  manual  worker 
as  a  citizen  of  the  state:  his  rights  and  duties;  titular  officials  of  the  state. 
The  state  constitution  of  Bavaria;  the  Bavarian  government.  The  constitu- 
tion of  the  German  empire;  its  problems.  Social  legislation.  Commerce 
and  traffic  in  the  nineteenth  century,  and  their  significance  for  the  interests 
and  welfare  of  the  citizen.  Value  of  the  German  consulates  in  foreign 
countries. 

The  citizen  of  the  state  in  public  life:  Human  society  —  the  social  and 
economic  differences  in  it ;  their  origin,  necessity  and  present  development. 
General  social  and  general  economic  arrangements  (lawmaking,  maintenance 
of  rights,  security,  culture  and  well-being).  The  participation  of  the  citizen 
of  the  state  in  the  advancement  of  the  general  interest  of  life.  The  advantage 
of  living  under  states  union.  The  economic  and  cultural  position  of  Ger- 
many in  the  world.  Supplementary  matter  from  industrial  laws,  especially 
legal  rules  regarding  machinery  and  the  running  of  factories ;  directions  for 
the  prevention  of  accidents. 

For  jewelers'  and  gold  and  silver  workers'  apprentices 

Industrialism :  History  of  .handwork  in  general ;  the  development  of  the 
gold  and  silver  smith  industry  in  particular ;  the  accomplishments  of  the 
ancient  eastern  peoples  in  this  field,  and  their  progress  in  the  art  up  to  the 
present  time,  especially  that  of  the  East  Indians,  Japanese  and  Chinese ; 
the  metalwork  and  ornaments  of  the  ancient  Romans ;  the  development  of 
the  industry  among  the  people  of  the  north,  and  especially  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  ecclesiastical  art  work  of  the  Middle  Ages  (enamel  and  filigree 
work).  The  influence  of  Italy  in  the  Renaissance  under  Cellini.  The  Ger- 
man masters  of  that  time  (Jamnitzer,  Eisenhoit  and  others).  The  importance 
of  France  in  this  field  since  the  eighteenth  century.  The  present  condition 
of  the  industry,  and  the  more  recent  advances  (Tiffany,  Lalique").  Important 
places   of  manufacture   of  the  past  and   present.     Related   industries.      The 


224  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

present-day  division  of  the  work  —  the  most  important,  from  the  industrial 
point  of  view.  Journeyman's  and  master's  examination.  (As  being  closely 
connected  with  the  industrial  instruction,  the  pupil  is  introduced  to  the  chief 
features  of  the  characteristic  forms  of  the  productions  of  his  industry.) 

GeograpJiy-Jiistory12 

1.     In  the  Cleveland  Elementary  Industrial  School13 

I.  Iron  and  Steel  Industry 

The  age  of  steel 

1.  Iron  ore;   its  value. 

2.  Distribution  of  ore  in  Lake  Superior  region. 

3.  Ease  in  mining  with  labor-saving  devices ;  speed  of  steam  shovel. 

4.  Transportation  of  ore  from  mines  to  boat ;    speed  in  loading  an 

8,000-ton  ore  boat;    unloading. 

5.  Blast  furnace.     Description.     Contents  of  furnace. 

6.  Connellsville    coke.      One    hundred    and    forty-mile    journey    to 

Cleveland. 

7.  Making  of  pig  iron. 

8.  Making  of  wrought  iron;    its  uses. 

9.  Steel :    Bessemer  converter. 

10.  Steel  has  revolutionized  farming,  war,  transportation.     Influence 

on  railroads,  bridges,  buildings. 

11.  Location  of  iron  and  steel  centers. 

II.  Lumbering 

Wood 

1.  Structure  :    Pith ;    wood ;    bark. 

(a)  Pith:    Center,  soft,  valueless. 

(b)  Wood :    Sapwood,  heartwood,  value  of  each. 

(c)  Grain:     Edges    of   annual    rings.      Woods    of   beautiful 

grains  —  specimens.      Value    of    grain    in    beauty    and 
durability. 

2.  Value  of  forests:    (a)   Construction,     (b)  Buildings;    furniture. 

(c)  Pavements,   fences,      (d)    Fuel;    pitch;    tar;    turpentine, 
(e)  Paper,  hemlock  bark,  maple  sugar,  nuts,  etc. 

3.  Lumbering:    (a)  The  logging  camp;    time  of  going  into  woods; 

why?     (b)   Building  of  camp;    life,     (c)  Control  of  streams. 

(d)  Cutting,  brushing,  felling,  branding,      (e)    Log-skidding; 
the  ice  road,     (f)    Banking  ground  and  edge  of  river  bank. 

12  An  excellent  outline  of  a  course  in  commercial  and  industrial  geography  for  seventh 
and  eighth  grades  may  be  found  on  pages  236  to  250  of  the  Syllabus  for  Elementary 
Schools,  New  York  State  Education  Department,  Albany,  New  York. 

13  The  outline  was  furnished  by  the  instructor,  Miss  E.  Freedlander.  Lantern-slides, 
obtained  from  the  Keystone  Mew  Co.,  Meadville,  Pa.,  are  used  in  the  course. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  225 

4.  Log-driving:  (a)  Time  of  year  and  conditions,  (b)  Hardship 
of  rivermen's  lives  and  dangers,  (d)  Control  of  stream, 
dams  and  log  chutes.  (d)  A  log  jam  and  its  dangers, 
(e)  Sorting  and  rafting  —  the  logs  at  the  "boom."  (f)  Raft- 
ing logs  to  the  sawmill. 

Manufacture 

(a)  Making   logs   into   lumber.     Sawmill;    location   and   kind   of 

power. 

(b)  Location  of  boom  for  holding  logs  :    Saw-room  and  its  machin- 

ery; saw  carriage;  kinds  of  saws  —  circular,  band,  gang; 
dry  kiln  ;    planing  mill. 

(c)  The   sawing  operation:    Carrying  logs  into   mill   from  boom. 

Sawyers  and  saw  carriage  which  holds  log  and  carries  it 
against  rapidly  moving  saw.  Drying  and  dressing.  Sawdust 
and  use.     Piling  in  great  stacks  on  docks  or  in  yards. 

Location  of  Forest  Regions 

1.  Pineries:    (a)  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont,     (b)  Northern 

Minnesota,  northern  Wisconsin,  northern  Michigan.  (c) 
Western  Washington,  western  Oregon,  western  California 
(especially  redwoods),  specimens. 

2.  Hardwoods:    (a)   Ohio  valley;    locate  by  States;    conditions  at 

present  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  Kentucky,  (b)  States  producing 
most  of  the  hardwoods  to-day;  our  outlook  in  this  field, 
(c)  Great  value;    industries  dependent  on  it. 

3.  Yellow  pines  and  cypress 

(a)  Yellow  pines :    Value  and  uses  of  wood.     Commercial 

use  of  sap.     Ports  of  export  —  Charleston,  Savannah. 

(b)  Cypress :     Method    of    lumbering    in    swamps ;     value ; 

where  wood  is  in  contact  with  water.  States  produc- 
ing: Louisiana,  Mississippi,  Alabama,  Florida.  Vir- 
ginia, North  and  South  Carolina. 

Marketing  of  Lumber 

1.  Lake  boats  —  Duluth  to  Cleveland:    trace  journey. 

2.  Minneapolis  —  in    heart    of    region.      Center    of    raw    material. 

Easy,  cheap  transportation.  Waterfalls  cheap  power.  Dis- 
tributing center. 

3.  Lake  ports  engaged  in  shipping  lumber. 

Mapwork  :    Western  ports  ;    kinds  of  lumber  ;    markets. 

Forest  reserves:    Conservation  of  forests.     Object  of  forest  reserves 
Work  of  government. 
16 


226  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

III.  Agriculture 

Wheat  (Correlate  with  breadmaking) 

1.  Widespread  use  in  ancient  and  modern  times  —  staff  of  life. 

2.  Varieties    of    wheat,    and    States    raising   it,    and    use :     Winter 

wheat,  spring  wheat,  durum. 

3.  Preparation  of  soil :     Plowing  —  steam  plow,   sulky  plow,  gang 

plow;    harrowing,  planting  —  pictures  of  machinery. 

4.  Harvesting :     Time    and   condition   of   grain.     Old   implements : 

Cradle,  reap  hook.     To-day :    Self-binder,  steam  header  and 
thresher. 

5.  Threshing.     Flail,  modern  machine.    Life  on  farm  during  thresh- 

ing season.. 

6.  Marketing  grain 

1.  Hauling  to  grain  elevators. 

2.  Grain-collecting   cities    of    West    and    immense    elevators. 

3.  Movement    of    wheat    by    rail :     Northern    Pacific,    Great 

Northern,  Chicago,  Milwaukee  &  Puget  Sound. 

4.  Cities   engaged  in  handling  of  wheat:    Minneapolis   as   a 

center,   Chicago,   Milwaukee,  St.   Louis,  San  Francisco, 
Seattle,    Tacoma. 

7.  Manufacture 

Flour :  Old  methods  of  grinding,  present  patent  roller  process. 
A  great  flour  mill  —  process  explained  with  specimens. 
Flour  production  —  cities. 

IV.  History 

1.  History  of  Cleveland. 

2.  Civics  —  the  government  of  Cleveland  in  detail. 

(a)  Charter. 

(b)  Council  and  mayor,  with  respective  duties. 

(c)  The  departments. 

1.  Public   service,   with   its    subdivisions   and  work   of 

each. 

2.  Public  safety. 

3.  In    study    of    industries,    historical    background    introduced,    for 

instance : 

1.  In  commerce  of  Great  Lakes,  the  history  of  Great  Lakes, 

beginning  with  French  explorations. 

2.  In  study  of  railroads  —  the  history  of  the  Union  and  Cen- 

tral  Pacific  R.   R.,   with   the   difficulties   of  the  under- 
taking. 

3.  In  lumbering,  in  the  hardwood  forests,  Daniel  Boone  and 

the  early  pioneers  in  Ohio  Valley. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  227 

Science 

1.  Industrial  chemistry  in  the  high  school  at  Menomonie,  Wis- 
consin.14 

The  first  semester  is  devoted  to  a  thorough  study  of  the  basic  principles 
and  phenomena.  In  order  to  cover  this  work  in  an  adequate  manner,  it  has 
been  necessary  to  reduce  the  subject-matter  to  the  fundamentals,  leaving  out 
much  that  is  in  the  average  text-book.  This  has  resulted  in  one  decided 
improvement  —  the  elimination  of  much  of  the  non-essential,  theoretical  work, 
likely  to  be  so  dear  to  the  heart  of  the  specialist  and  worth  so  little  to  the 
high-school  student.  During  the  second  semester  two  lines  of  study  are  car- 
ried on.  The  girls  study  household  chemistry  and  the  boys  have  industrial 
chemistry.  To  facilitate  progress,  boys  and  girls  are  put  into  separate  sec- 
tions. In  fact,  they  are  segregated  from  the  beginning,  but  this  is  more  a 
matter  of  convenience  than  of  necessity,  as  far  as  the  work  of  the  first 
semester  is  concerned. 

The  work  in  household  chemistry  may  be  grouped  under  three  heads : 
the  chemistry  of  foods,  of  breadmaking,  and  of  cleaning.  The  different 
classes  of  foods  and  their  general  reactions  are  studied.  Whenever  it  is  pos- 
sible, the  different  food  principles  are  extracted  from  the  foods  in  which  they 
commonly  occur.  For  example,  in  the  study  of  proteids  collagen  is  extracted 
from  bone  and  converted  into  gelatin.  Tests  are  made  on  the  solubility  of 
syntonin  in  lean  meat.  Studies  are  made  on  albumin  from  eggs,  casein  from 
milk,  and  a  proteid  from  some  vegetable.  In  the  study  of  sugars,  glucose  is 
prepared  by  the  hydralization  of  starch  which  the  student  has  previously 
extracted  from  potatoes.  An  effort  is  made  to  familiarize  the  student  with 
the  common  foodstuffs  and  with  the  changes  they  undergo  in  cooking. 

The  work  in  breadmaking  includes  the  fermentation  process,  a  study  of 
the  necessary  and  favorable  conditions  for  the  growth  of  the  yeast,  with 
regard  to  food  supply,  moisture  and  temperature.  In  connection  with  the 
study  of  bread  raised  by  the  non-fermentative  process,  baking  powder  and 
soda  are  subjects  of  consideration.  Tests  are  made  for  ammonium,  cream 
of  tartar,  phosphate  and  sulphate  powders.  A  cream  of  tartar  powder  is 
prepared,  the  best  proportionate  amounts  of  soda  and  tartrate  being  deter- 
mined by  experiment.  The  reactions  of  various  acids,  such  as  hydrochloric, 
lactic  and  tartaric,  with  soda,  are  noted;    also  the  reactions  of  acid  salts. 

The  chemistry  of  cleaning  involves  a  study  of  the  chemical  nature  of 
stains,  such  as  grease,  blood,  paint,  rust,  ink,  fruit,  tea,  coffee  and  grass 
stains,  with  the  different  cleaning  reagents  and  their  proper  application.  A 
kitchen  cabinet  of  cleaning  reagents  is  prepared  and  labeled  as  to  composi- 
tion and  use. 

The  following  experiment  is  chosen  from  the  work  on  soapmaking: 

Dissolve  15  g.  of  potassium  hydroxide  in  120  c.  c.  of  water  and  pour 
half  of  this  into  a  porcelain  evaporating  dish  of  at  least  500  c.  c.  capacity; 
add  60  c.  c.  of  water  and  50  g.  of  tallow.     Boil  this  solution  for  three- 

"  The  outline  here  given  is  taken  from  the  'School  Review,  October,  1910. 


228  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

quarters  of  an  hour,  carefully  replacing  from  time  to  time  the  water 
which  has  been  lost  by  evaporation ;  then  add  the  remainder  of  the  solu- 
tion of  potassium  hydroxide  and  boil  at  least  an  hour  more.  Water 
should  be  added  as  before,  but  the  volume  of  the  liquid  may  be  allowed 
to  decrease  about  one-third.  Cool.  What  are  the  properties  of  soft 
soap?  Use?  Add  20  g.  of  salt,  boil  for  a  few  minutes  and  allow  the 
liquid  to  cool.  The  soap  will  rise  to  the  top,  and  the  glycerin,  excess  of 
lye  and  salt  will  remain  in  solution.  Write  chemical  equation  represent- 
ing reaction  for  formation  of  soap. 

The  industrial  chemistry  for  the  boys  covers  a  study  of  clays  and  brick- 
making,  cements,  mortars  and  glazes,  the  sources  and  preparation  of  illumi- 
nating gases,  fuels,  the  softening  of  water  and  tests  of  its  purity,  bleaching 
and  oxidizing  agents,  the  extraction  and  clarification  of  beet  sugar,  making 
of  matches,  the  denaturing  and  quick  vinegar  processes,  alloys  and  amalgams, 
covering  the  preparation  of  brass  and  solder,  preparation  of  common  com- 
pounds, manufacture  of  pigments  and  inks,  blowpipe  analysis  of  some  native 
minerals,  electrolysis  and  electroplating,  preparation  of  varnishes  and  stains, 
a  little  work  in  photography  and  some  agricultural  chemistry.  In  this  course 
certain  basic  work  is  required  of  all.  Beyond  this  there  is  some  individual 
adaptation  of  experiments,  so  that  each  pupil  does  not  personally  conduct 
work  in  all  of  the  subjects  indicated. 

The  following  experiment  is  chosen  from  the  study  of  fuels : 

To  determine  the  fixed  carbon  in  coal.  Heat  about  2  gm.  of  pulver- 
ized coal  in  a  porcelain  crucible  closely  covered  as  long  as  any  smoke 
is  given  off.  Weigh.  To  what  is  the  loss  of  weight  due?  What  remains 
in  the  crucible?  Heat  the  remainder,  with  cover  removed,  in  a  blast 
flame  until  all  the  carbon  is  burned  out.  Weight.  The  second  loss  in 
weight  represents  the  fixed  carbon  in  the  coal.  The  incombustible 
remainder  is  ashes.    Compare  your  results  with  the  following  table : 

Water  Volatile  Matters  Fixed  Carbon  Ash 

Lignite    18.00                 20.00                       50.90  10.20 

Bituminous    1.97                 38.60                       54.15  4.10 

Cannel   Undet.               37.20                      61.60  1.20 

Anthracite    3.09                  4.28                      83.81  8.18 

Compare  the  retail  prices  of  the  above  coals  and  their  fixed  carbon 
content.  Would  this  hold  true  if  we  lived  in  a  coal-mining  district? 
Why?  Coke  has  a  high  carbon  content.  Its  price  is  relatively  low. 
Why? 

2.     Physics  in  the  Technical  High  School,  Cleveland.15 

Throughout  the  work,  both  for  boys  and  girls,  the  laboratory  apparatus 
is  of  the  simplest,  much  of  it  being  made  in  the  shops  of  the  school,  and  the 
laboratory  work  aims  to  make  clear  to  the  student  the  principles  of  physics 

16  The  outline  was  furnished  by  the  instructor. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  229 

rather  than  to  be  a  research  course  for  the  purpose  of  elaborate  proof   of 
the  laws  of  physics.    Boys'  and  girls'  classes  are  segregated. 

Boys'  Physics 

First  term  :    mechanics,  12  weeks. 

Second  term :    sound,  2  weeks ;   light,  2  weeks ;    heat,  8  weeks. 

Third  term  :    electricity,  12  weeks. 

Mechanics 

1.  Machines  with  special  reference  to  the  boys'  shop  experience.  Prob- 
lems from  the  shops.  Applied  problems  in  transmission  of  power  by  belts, 
gears,  etc.,  width  of  belts  for  given  power  transmission,  finding  delivered 
horse-power  by  Prony  brake.  The  definitions  are  in  engineering  terms  and 
the  engineering  units  of  power,  work,  energy,  and  others  are  given  as  needed, 
after  the  appetite  for  them  is  aroused. 

2.  Parallel  forces  and  parallelogram  of  forces.  Much  rich  material  for 
this  part  of  the  work  has  been  furnished  by  the  foreman  of  a  telephone-line 
construction  gang  and  by  a  firm  building  bridge  and  roof  trusses. 

3.  Dynamics,  accelerated  motion,  falling  bodies,  kinetic  energy,  curvi- 
linear motion,  treated  rather  briefly  and  in  engineering  units,  are  given  in  a 
comparatively  simple  manner. 

4.  Fluid  (liquid  and  gas)  pressures,  gas  laws  and  specific  gravity. 

5.  Strength  of  materials.  Stresses  and  strains,  elasticity,  elastic  limit, 
etc.  Tensile,  transverse,  compression  and  shearing  strength  are  treated. 
The  material  and  proportions  to  be  used  in  furniture  and  machine  design 
are  computed  so  that  no  part  will  be  loaded  with  needless  weight,  and  yet 
every  part  will  have  a  reasonable  safety  factor  for  its  maximum  load. 

Sound  and  Light 

A  brief  course  in  the  fundamentals,  with  explanations  of  the  most  com- 
mon phenomena. 

Heat 

Special  attention  is  given  to  the  coefficient  of  expansion  as  applied  to 
patternmaking,  foundry  practice  and  steam  engineering.  Indicator  cards  are 
made  for  steam  engines.  Gas  engines  are  studied  in  correlation  with  the 
making  of  gas  engines  by  boys'  in  the  machine  shop. 

Electricity 

The  course  in  electricity  differs  widely  from  the  usual  course  in  this  sub- 
ject. Most  text-books  follow  the  historical  line  of  development,  that  is.  spend 
most  of  the  time  in  studying  frictional  and  static  electricity,  and  devote  little 
to  the  many  applications  of  the  present  day.  The  boy  usually  has  a  magnet, 
a  battery  and  a  toy  motor  long  before  he  reaches  high  school.  This  line  of 
interest  is  followed  in  this  course. 

1.  The  magnet  and  magnetic  field  as  shown  by  iron  filings. 

2.  Revolving  a  loop  of  wire  in  the  magnetic  field,  cutting  the  lines  of 
force,  the  simple  D.  C.  dynamo. 


230  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

3.  The  electromagnet,  same  field  set  up  by  a  coil,  with  its  many  appli- 
cations, three  type  cells,  open-circuit,  closed-circuit  and  storage. 

4.  The  action  of  two  fields,  the  galvanometer  and  D.  C.  motor  and  the 
modern  switchboard  instruments. 

5.  Modern  forms  of  electric  lamps,  power  consumption,  light  and  effi- 
ciency of  each. 

6.  A.  C.  generator,  induction  coil  and  transformer. 

7.  The  modern  three-phase  alternator  with  its  distribution  system. 

8.  D.  C.  motors,  induction  motors. 

9.  Static  electricity,  X-ray,  wireless,  etc. 

Girls'  Physics 

The  girls  physics  begins  the  first  term  with  heat  instead  of  mechanics. 
Heating  and  ventilating,  temperature  in  various  methods  of  cooking,  influence 
of  heat  and  moisture  on  different  textiles,  refrigeration,  etc.,  with  a  little 
mechanics  worked  in,  as  required,  furnish  a  term's  work. 

The  second  term  sound  and  light,  with  a  little  mechanics  incidentally 
introduced.  The  effect  of  different  artificial  lights  on  the  color  of  fabrics 
and  the  effect  of  color  decorations  on  light  and  dark  rooms  in  the  home  are 
considered. 

In  the  third  term  the  applications  of  electricity  in  the  home  are  espe- 
cially emphasized  and  many  of  the  modern  electrical  appliances  are  tried  out, 
their  current  consumption  measured  and  cost  computed. 

Reference  and  test-books 

In  conversations  with  instructors  in  the  various  schools  visited 
by  the  committee's  representative,  an  effort  was  made  to  find  out 
what  books  were  used  by  the  instructor  in  organizing  the  academic 
subjects  around  the  shop  and  industrial  needs.  The  following  list 
of  books  was  obtained  in  this  way : 

Mathematics 

1.  Machine  Shop  Calculations,  by  Fred  H.  Calvin,  published  by  the  Hill 
Publishing  Company.  505  Pearl  street,  New  York. 

2.  Mechanical*  Engineer's  Handbook,  John  W.  Wiley  &  Sons,  New  York. 

3.  Kent's  Formulas  in  Gearing,  Browne  &  Sharpe  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany, Providence,  Rhode  Island. 

4.  Elementary  Algebra  and  Mensuration,  by  Carl  S.  Dow,  American 
School  of  Correspondence. 

5.  Castle's  Workshop  Mathematics,  Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

6.  Duncan's  Applied  Mechanics,  Macmillan  Company,  New  York. 

7.  Tables  for  Engineers  and  Business  Men,  University  Press,  Knoxville, 
Tennessee. 

8.  Useful  Information  for  Business  Men,  Jones  &  Laughlin,  Pittsburgh, 
Pennsylvania. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES  231 

9.  Handbook  of  Arithmetic  and  Geometry,  for  apprentices  of  the  Fore 
River  Shipbuilding  Company,  Quincy,  Massachusetts. 

10.  Ludlow  Textile  Arithmetic,  C.  R.   Kaplinger  Company,   Springfield, 
Massachusetts. 

11.  A   number   of  pamphlets    containing   formulas    for   mechanics,    pub- 
lished by  the  Industrial  Press,  49-55  Lafayette  street.  New  VorK-. 

History 

1.  Coman's  Industrial  History  of  the  United  States,  Macmillan  Company, 
New  York. 

2.  Thurston's  Economic  and  Industrial  History  for  Secondary  Schools, 
Scott,  Foresman  &  Co.,  Chicago. 

3.  Bogart's   Economic   History   of   the   United  States,   Longmans,    New- 
York. 

4.  Dopp's  Place  of  Industries  in  Elementary  Education,  University  of 
Chicago  Press,  Chicago. 

5.  American  Inventors  and  Inventions,  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York. 

6.  The  Story  of  Iron  and  Steel,  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York. 

7.  A  pamphlet  on  the  early  development  of  the  silk  industry,  published 
by  the  Brainerd  &  Armstrong  Company. 

Geography 

1.  The  Geography  of  Commerce  and  Industry,  Educational   Publishing 
Company. 

2.  Day's  Commercial  Geography  of  the  World. 

3.  Carpenter's  Geographical  Reader  of  North  America,  American  Book 
Company,  New  York. 

4.  Adams'  Commercial  Geography,  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York. 

5.  Olin's  Commercial  Geography,  American  Book  Company,  New  York. 

Civics 

1.  Foreman's  Civil  Government,  American  Book  Company,  New  York. 

2.  Dunn's  The  Community  and  the  Citizen,  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  Boston. 


111.    Wages  of  Students  from  Trade  axd  Technical  Schools 

Figures  6  to  11,  following,  give  the  wages  received  by  students 
from  eight  trade  and  technical  schools,  compared  with  the  wages  of 
persons  trained  only  in  the  industries.  In  so  far  as  the  statistics  for 
the  industrial  schools  are  not  affected  by  selective  factors  such  as 
family  influence  and  economic  status,  the  figures  6  to  11  show  the 
superior  value  of  training  received  in  industrial  schools  over  training 
received  in  the  industries  alone. 


232 


REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Fig.  6.     Comparison  of  wages  of  mechanics  having  only  shop 
training  with  those  having  trade-school  training 


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Average  A^e 


Fig.  6  is  taken  from  Person's  Industrial  Education,  and  is  based 
on  statistics  gathered  by  James  M.  Dodge,  from  employees  in  the 
Link  Belt  Engineering  Company,  the  Dodge  Coal  Storage  Company, 
and  similar  lines  of  business.  The  records  of  trade-school  trained 
mechanics  are  from  about  twenty-five  employees  who  had  received 
their  training  in  the  Williamson  School  of  Trades  [see  page  190]. 


Fig.  7 


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Fig.   7   is  taken   from  an  article  by   Florence    M. 
Charities  and  Commons,  October  5.  1007. 


Marshall,   in 


234 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Fig.  8.    Wages  of  1,120  former  students  of  Hebrew  Technical 
School  for  Girls,  New  York  City 


30 

25 

20 

15 

•+->      Qi 

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5.8% 


2.1% 


6T08        9        IOT0I2     I5T0I6    I8T02O   2IT035 

Wa.g-25  in  dollars  per  week 

Fig.  8  is  drawn  from  statistics  taken  from  the  President's  Report 
for  1909. 


Fig.  9  is  taken  from  an  article  by  Susan  M.  Kingsbury,  in  the 
Report  of  the  Massachusetts  Commission  on  Industrial  and  Tech- 
nical Education,  April,  1906.  The  statistics  of  boys  with  technical- 
school  training  are  of  students  from  the  California  School  of 
Mechanic  Arts,  San  Francisco  (a  four-year  trade  school),  and  from 
the  Technical  High  School,  Springfield,  Massachusetts. 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTIILR  CITIES 


235 


Fig.  9 


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boy*    ha/mg     Shop  training  o.ndL    technical   scncol    breuri'nq. 


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Technical  SoKOoftAlumbCrS  Can> 
j  iidtreJ   of 


Fig.  10.     Wages  of  634  Graduates  of  the  Hebrew  Technical 
Institute,  New  York  City 


Average  WeeKly  Earnings 


INDUSTRIAL  SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES 


237 


Fig.  10  is  drawn  from  statistics  furnished  by  the  principal,  Edgar 
S.  Barney. 

Forty-two  per  cent  of  the  students  from  the  Hebrew  Technical 
Institute  who  have  been  out  of  school  ten  years  or  more  are  holding 
positions  as  foremen,  superintendents,  or  proprietors,  according  to 
a  statement  of  the  principal. 


Fig.  11 


THE  MONEY  VALUE  OF  INDUSTRIAL  TRAINING. 


SAURY  PER  WEEK  J-" 


MtUK 


ftMtWktt. 

xtwvs  ww 


tO^*t»'A«»»UM«. 


AOE 


15  YEARS      20  YEARS       2S  YEARS      30 YEARS       3SYEARS        37YEARS 

™*      NEWARK  TECHNICAL  SCHOOL 

^Ltv^ss^s      ^\mmw«^ww«  awn*- 


.wwmms. 


Fig.  11  is  taken  from  the  report  of  the  New  Jersey  Commission 
on  Industrial  Education.  The  statistics  on  the  Newark  Technical 
School  are  based  on  returns  from  226  graduates. 


238  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


PART  III 

COMMERCIAL  EDUCATION  IN  CHICAGO 
AND  IN  OTHER  CITIES 

BASED  UPON  A  REPORT  TO  THE  SUB-COMMITTEE 

By 
WALTER   C.  CAMPBELL 

Special  Investigator  for  the  Sub-committee 


CHAPTER  IX 

SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS.    SCHOOLS  IN  OTHER  CITIES 


Commercial  education  in  Chicago  exists  obviously  on  account 
of  the  necessity  for  training  young  people  for  business  positions. 
This  necessity  is  recognized  by  business  men  who  expect  new 
employees  to  be  able  to  take  up  work  in  their  offices  without  a  great 
deal  of  preliminary  instruction ;  it  is  realized  most  acutely  by  par- 
ents who  wish  their  children  to  become  wage-earners  in  order  to 
help  out  the  family  budget ;  and  it  is  realized  by  the  young  people 
themselves1  because  they  expect  a  commercial  education  to  fit  them 
to  succeed  in  business  life. 

That  the  need  of  business  training  is  great  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  31.5  per  cent  of  the  total  number  of  students  enrolled  in  the 
high  schools  of  Chicago  elect  a  commercial  course,2  that  19,000 
(estimated)  pupils  are  enrolled  in  the  forty  or  more  commercial 
schools,3  and  that  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  and  parochial  day  and  evening 
schools  are  providing  for  thousands  more.  The  demand  for  com- 
mercial education  has  thus  far  been  met  by  the  high  schools,  by  the 
private  business  colleges,  by  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  and  by  correspondence 
schools,  by  parochial  business  schools,  by  schools  organized  by  social 
settlements  or  by  employers,  and  finally  by  the  University  of  Chi- 
cago and  Northwestern  University  in  their  Schools  of  Commerce. 

Whether  the  training  received  in  these  schools  fully  meets  the 
business  needs  of  Chicago  is  doubtful,  especially  in  view  of  the 
statement  of  many  business  men4  and  teachers"'  of  Chicago.     The 

1  See  Chapter  XIII.  *  See  Chapter  XI. 

2  See  Chapter  XII.  6  See  Chapter  XII. 

3  See  Chapter  X. 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  239 

general  opinion  of  employers  is  that  people  come  to  them  lacking 
the  theoretical  education  and  practical  training  which  ought  to  fit 
them  to  take  up  routine  office  work  immediately  and  to  qualify  them 
to  compete  for  the  so-called  directive  positions  in  business.  The 
young  people  lack  in  the  first  place  a  general  education  broad  enough 
to  enable  them  to  see  all  sides  of  a  new  proposition ;  and  in  the 
second  place,  they  lack  the  special  training  which  should  provide 
them  with  an  equipment  which  they  can  apply  to  new  proposition-. 

In  spite  of  this  fact  there  is  no  insistent  demand  on  the  part  of 
employers  for  a  change  in  our  present  system  of  commercial  edu- 
cation. They  take  what  comes  to  them  and  do  the  best  they  can 
with  it.  Some  business  houses  expect  to  train  their  employees.  One 
concern  in  the  city  has  been  taking  some  pride  in  the  fact  that  it 
takes  in  untrained  office  people,  makes  first-class  clerks  of  them,  and 
sends  them  to  other  businesses. 

The  employers  do  admit,  however,  that  they  do  not  get  the  kind 
of  help  they  want.  They  say  rather  unanimously  that  the  young 
people  come  to  them  deficient  in  the  common  branches,  that  they 
would  rather  have  older  people  and  people  with  a  general  high- 
school  education,  at  least,  and  that  the  present  commercial  courses 
in  the  high  schools  are  very  weak. 

At  the  present  time  the  employers  do  not  rely  upon  the  high 
schools  or  commercial  colleges  for  their  help.  If  they  want  a 
stenographer  or  a  bookkeeper  they  do  not  ask  the  high  school  or  the 
business  college  to  provide  one.  This  is,  undoubtedly,  true  for  all 
the  larger  business  houses ;  the  smaller  business  men  were  not 
investigated  in  this  inquiry.  The  general  consensus  of  opinion 
among  business  men  is  that  business  colleges  are  little  better  than 
the  public  schools  in  the  character  of  commercial  work.  The  defi- 
ciencies are  the  same  in  both  types  of  school. 

It  is  expected  in  this  report  to  inquire  only  into  the  work  of  the 
public  high  schools,  the  private  business  colleges,  and  the  Y.  M.  C. 
A.,  the  other  schools  offering  commercial  courses  being  of  a  nature 
not  capable  of  comparison  with  these  other  three  types  of  schools. 

Commercial  courses  in  public  high  schools 

In  sixteen  (16)  of  the  high  schools  of  Chicago  a  regular  com- 
mercial course  practically  uniform  throughout  the  city  is  offered. 
Commercial  studies  are  offered  in  addition  to  the  academic  work 
and  are  elective.     Among  the  subjects   studied  in  the  course  are 


240  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

bookkeeping,  stenography  and  typewriting,  commercial  law  and  com- 
mercial geography  and  some  economics,  and  other  associated  sub- 
jects such  as  English  composition,  spelling,  modern  languages, 
arithmetic,  etc.,  which  are  not  given  with  a  view  to  business  practice 
but  rather  to  meet  college  entrance  requirements. 

There  is  no  separate  commercial  department  with  a  departmental 
head  and  no  separate  corps  of  teachers.  Those  teaching  commercial 
branches  complain  that  the  work  receives  little  encouragement  from 
the  public-school  officers,  that  it  is  lacking  in  equipment,  in  time 
(especially  for  practice  work)  and  in  an  atmosphere  of  practical 
business.6  In  addition,  those  who  elect  the  commercial  work  are 
handicapped  by  the  excessive  amount  of  academic  work  required 
because  courses  are  planned  to  meet  college  entrance  requirements. 

In  spite  of  this  31.5  per  cent  of  the  students  elect  this  work,  and 
thousands  are  leaving  the  high  schools  and  going  to  business  colleges. 
It  is  said  that  over  75  per  cent  of  the  high-school  students  drop  out 
at  some  time  during  the  four-year  course.7  A  large  number  of  these 
drop  out  because  of  the  necessity  for  going  to  work ;  a  number  of 
others  because  of  the  attraction  of  good  wages,  even  though  under 
no  immediate  necessity  of  working.  Some  are  restless  and  actual 
business  work  is  more  attractive  than  attendance  at  schools ;  and 
some  can  not  keep  up  because  of  intellectual  weakness,  which  makes 
further  study  in  high  school  uninviting  to  them.  A  large  number 
leave  high  school  to  finish  their  course  in  business  colleges,  the  chief 
influence  in  such  cases  being  the  belief  that  business  colleges  offer 
more  practical  work  and  that  greater  possibilities  of  earning  a  living 
come  after  business-college  training. 

The  chief  criticism  against  the  high  schools  is  that  the  work  is 
not  practical,  is  not  conducted  by  teachers  trained  especially  for 
business  work,  nor  in  an  atmosphere  which  even  begins  to  approach 
that  of  actual  business.  Under  such  conditions,  it  can  not  be 
expected  that  the  work  will  interest  the  student  in  the  first  place,  or, 
having  interested  him,  that  it  will  prove  of  value  to  him  in  the  end. 

Private  commercial  schools 

The  forty  or  more  commercial  colleges,  on  the  other  hand,  offer 
apparently  exactly  what  the  students  desire,  a  commercial  education 
only.    The  average  commercial  college  presents  an  air  of  business ; 

8  See  Chapter  XII. 
7  See  Chapter  XIII. 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  241 

the  equipment  is  quite  adequate  and  the  plan  of  work,  especially  on 
the  technical  side,  seems  at  first  desirable.  The  students  are  offered 
a  course  in  business  theory  and  practice  which  seems  suited  to  fit 
them  for  the  ends  desired. 

Criticisms  may,  however,  be  made  upon  the  work  of  the  private 
business  college.  Only  a  few  of  them  are  really  efficient,  and  in 
every  case  the  course  is  too  short.  The  whole  attempt  is  to  drive 
the  student  through  in  as  short  a  time  as  possible,  this  being,  of 
course,  an  attractive  feature  in  the  case  of  the  student  who  must  be 
a  wage-earner  immediately  after  he  graduates  ;  from  his  point  of 
view  the  sooner  he  graduates  the  better.  The  business  colleges  will 
take  students  ordinarily  without  regard  to  age,  though  several  main- 
tain they  take  no  one  under  fifteen  years.  They  pay  little  attention 
to  previous  training  and  do  not  take  into  account  the  natural  adapta- 
bility or  ability  on  the  part  of  the  student,  i.  e.,  no  attempt  is  made 
to  inquire  whether  the  prospective  student  is  fitted  to  become  a  busi- 
ness man  either  in  a  directive  or  directed  position.  All  is  grist  that 
comes  to  the  business  college  mill. 

A  further  criticism  is  that  business  colleges  feel  that  they  are 
under  the  necessity  of  keeping  their  attendance,  to  pay  dividends 
on  their  capital,  and  therefore  conduct  a  vigorous  campaign  of 
solicitation  which  extends  even  to  the  pupils  in  the  grammar  schools. 
It  is  estimated  that  25  per  cent  to  35  per  cent  of  their  gross  receipts 
are  paid  out  to  solicitors.8  It  is,  perhaps,  pertinent  to  inquire  if 
this  money  could  not  be  more  profitably  expended  by  the  business 
colleges  themselves  in  equipment  or  teaching  staff. 

They  also  need  public  supervision.  They  are  not  open  to  inspec- 
tion by  the  public  officers  and  are  not  regulated  by  the  school  board 
or  other  school  authorities. 

The  typical  commercial  course  in  commercial  colleges  includes 
bookkeeping,  commercial  arithmetic,  commercial  law,  penmanship, 
business  correspondence,  shorthand  and  typewriting,  and  what  is 
called  English,  including  reading,  writing,  spelling,  grammar  and,  in 
some  cases,  history,  geography,  arithmetic,  etc.  The  average  time 
for  such  a  course  is  about  eight  months,  and  the  average  tuition  is 
about  $11  per  month. 

The  commercial  colleges  themselves  insist  that  their  methods  are 
the  correct  ones,  that  their  course  is  arranged  to  give  the  maximum 
of  practical  work  in  the  minimum  of  time,  that  the  course  is  con- 

8  See  Chapter  X. 

17 


242  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

ducted  by  teachers  especially  trained  for  business  work  who  make 
it  a  practice  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  latest  business  methods,  and 
that,  therefore,  their  courses  are  much  more  efficient  than  can  be 
given  in  the  public  high  schools  at  present.  It  is  true,  however,  that 
the  greater  number  of  students  turned  out  by  the  commercial  col- 
leges, as  well  as  by  the  high  schools,  are  inefficient,  except  possibly 
in  a  mechanical  way  ;9  and  they  still  require  detailed  instruction 
in  that  which  they  are  supposed  to  have  learned  in  school.  The 
business  training  of  the  public  schools  and  of  the  commercial  col- 
leges does  not  fit  their  graduates  to  take  up  business  work  with 
the  expectation  of  working  themselves  into  positions  of  responsi- 
bility. 

Commercial  courses  in  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 

The  continuation  work  in  the  day  and  evening  schools  of  the 
Y.  M.  C.  A.  has  been  to  some  extent  more  successful  than  work  in 
the  high  schools  and  commercial  colleges  largely  because  of  the 
nature  of  the  students.  The  Y.  M.  C.  A.  classes  are  attended  by 
boys  who  are  anxious  to  advance,  boys  who  realize  their  needs  in 
certain  lines,  some  of  whom  are  already  employed,  some,  indeed, 
being  sent  by  employers  who  pay  their  tuition.  In  addition  to  this, 
the  teachers  are  people  actually  engaged  in  the  work  they  are  teach- 
ing. The  instructors  in  bookkeeping,  for  example,  in  these  schools, 
are  men  actually  working  during  the  day  in  some  office,  or  are  men 
taken  from  some  large  concern  and  put  in  charge  of  the  work  in 
the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 

In  general,  the  courses  offered  are  about  the  same  as  those  in  the 
commercial  colleges,  i.  e.,  bookkeeping,  commercial  law,  business 
practice,  stenography  and  typewriting,  etc.  In  addition,  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  offers  special  courses  in  advertising,  real  estate  salesmanship, 
finance  and  investments,  conducted  by  business  men  experienced 
in  these  lines  of  work.  The  time  required  to  complete  a  course  in 
bookkeeping  or  in  stenography  and  typewriting  is  six  to  nine  months. 
The  Y.  M.  C.  A.  takes  nobody  under  fifteen  years  of  age  and  the 
average  age  of  students  is  twenty-two  years.  The  average  enrol- 
ment in  the  evening  schools  is  about  250  for  the  year. 

The  Y.  M.  C.  A.  also  makes  a  special  effort  to  cooperate  with 
business  houses.  It  is  true,  of  course,  that  the  commercial  colleges 
maintain  employment  bureaus  and  through  them  manage  to  fulfil 

9  See  Chapter  XI. 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  243 

their  promises  to  graduates  to  provide  them  with  positions,  but  they 
do  not  make  the  effort  made  by  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  in  putting  its  grad- 
uates into  the  best  positions,  nor  do  they  try  as  the  Y.  M.  C.  A. 
does  to  use  "  part  time  "  or  "  continuation  "  work. 

Summary  of  conditions 

The  general  criticism,  then,  on  the  whole  situation  in  commercial 
education  in  Chicago  is  that  the  work  is  not  designed  to  meet  the 
special  needs  of  Chicago.  The  business  of  Chicago  is  largely  that 
of  selling  and  transporting  merchandise.  The  majority  of  the 
employees  are  perhaps  in  jobbing  houses  and  railroad  offices.  In 
addition  to  these,  there  are  large  numbers  of  employees  in  manu- 
facturing industries,  department  stores,  and  mail-order  houses. 
These  businesses  need  men  who  are  capable  of  taking  responsibility 
very  early  in  their  business  careers.  Some  of  the  large  jobbing 
houses  in  Chicago  are  sending  men  to  the  various  colleges  in  the 
country  to  interview  graduates  for  the  sole  purpose  of  getting  men 
who  are  able  to  work  rapidly  into  responsible  positions. 

The  business  courses  in  the  schools  of  Chicago,  public  and  pri- 
vate, are  not  designed  to  produce  such  men.  Business  colleges  are 
not  meeting  the  demand,  for  they  pay  no  attention  to  such  matters 
as  the  previous  general  training  of  their  students  or  their  natural 
ability.  As  one  employer  says,  "  a  great  many  good  mechanics  are 
spoiled  in  making  very  poor  clerks."  Pupils  should  be  trained  for 
that  line  of  work  for  which  they  are  suited. 

The  work  of  the  public  schools  is  distinctly  not  work  of  the  busi- 
ness type.  It  is  so  inadequate  that  for  this  reason  students  leave  the 
schools,  even  when  not  obliged  to  from  necessity  to  work,  and  even 
when  not  prevailed  upon  to  leave  by  commercial  colleges.  Those 
taking  the  public-school  course  or  those  graduating  from  business 
colleges  are  likely  to  become  mere  machines. 

It  is,  perhaps,  interesting  to  inquire  to  what  extent  business  in 
Chicago  adjusts  itself  to  meet  this  situation.  Some  busine.-s  men 
who  say  they  get  the  kind  of  help  they  want  have  their  business  so 
systematized  that  one  clerk  does  one  kind  of  work  the  whole  day 
through.  Is  it  not,  perhaps,  true  that  this  division  of  labor  has  come 
about  as  much  from  lack  of  well-educated  office  employees  as  from 
advanced  business  organization? 

The  students  in  the  commercial  colleges  pay  about  a  million  and 
a  half  dollars  in  tuition.    Why  could  not  this  million  and  a  half  dol- 


244  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

lars  of  the  money  of  citizens  of  Chicago  be  invested  in  commercial 
high  schools  or  courses  offered  in  the  present  high  schools  which 
would  be  designed  to  meet  the  needs  of  Chicago's  business  ? 

Remedies 

It  has  been  apparent  for  some  time  that  some  other  plan  of  edu- 
cating the  young  people  for  business  should  be  adopted  and  fol- 
lowed out  vigorously. 

Two  schemes  have  been  suggested.  One  is  the  establishment  of 
separate  departments  of  commercial  education  in  the  present  schools 
with  separate  directors  of  commercial  work  and  a  separate  corps  of 
teachers.  The  work  is  to  be  the  same  in  all  the  high  schools  coordi- 
nated under  efficient  leadership  and  supervision  over  the  whole  city. 
The  purpose  is  to  "  give  business  courses  based  on  business  methods 
by  instructors  who  know  business  methods."  While  it  is  thought 
that  the  four  years'  course  of  equal  grade  with  the  regular  aca- 
demic instruction  is  the  very  best  scheme  for  giving  the  most 
thorough  commercial  work,  it  has  also  been  suggested  that  a  course 
of  two  years'  duration  should  be  offered  which  would  meet  the 
demands  of  those  obliged  to  leave  school  early  to  go  to  work. 

The  second  plan  is  the  establishment  of  a  separate  high  school, 
or,  perhaps,  one  central  high  school  and  three  branch  schools,  one 
each  for  the  north,  south  and  west  sides.  Such  a  high  school  would 
be  technical  in  character  after  the  manner  of  Crane  and  Lane  Tech- 
nical High  Schools,  and  would  have  no  direct  connection  with  other 
high  schools.  It  would  be  under  the  control  of  a  separate  director 
of  commercial  work  and  would,  therefore,  have  not  only  the  advan- 
tage of  giving  business  atmosphere,  but  that  of  inspiring  both  teach- 
ers and  students  with  a  business  spirit  and  patriotism  for  their 
school  which  would  give  added  force  and  impetus  to  their  work. 

Whichever  one  of  these  plans  it  is  thought  best  to  adopt,  the 
cooperation  of  the  business  man  of  the  city  is  one  of  the  most  neces- 
sary factors.  An  advisory  committee  of  business  men  could  render 
service  of  great  value  to  such  a  school  by  giving  counsel  as  to  the 
course  of  study  and  in  visiting  and  inspecting  the  schools  and  giving 
criticism  of  the  work  being  done.  Business  men  and  business  houses 
could  take  students  for  part-time  work  during  the  school  year,  or 
full  time  during  the  summer  vacations. 

This  plan  has  been  tried  in  some  manual  training  schools  and 
seems  very  successful.     Lewis  Institute  cooperates  with  a  number 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  '-'45 

of  factories  in  the  city  in  a  scheme  whereby  every  student  works 
during  the  school  year,  part  of  the  time  in  the  school  and  part  of 
the  time  in  the  factory.  Interviews  with  the  instructors  of  the 
school,  and  with  the  business  men  and  with  some  of  the  boys  in 
the  classes  show  the  arrangement  to  be  very  successful. 

It  would  be  more  difficult  in  some  cases  to  apply  the  part-time 
scheme  to  officework,  salesmanship,  etc.,  but  there  are  very  few 
business  houses  in  Chicago  which  could  not  employ  the  students  dur- 
ing the  summer.  It  is  the  time  of  vacations  for  regular  employees 
and  the  business  houses  actually  need  additional  help  during  these 
months.  Another  form  of  cooperation  could  be  found  in  affording 
opportunities  for  teachers  and  classes  to  visit  the  various  offices,  to 
make  a  thorough  inspection  and  study  the  work  at  first  hand. 

The  definite  aim  of  such  commercial  work  would  be  to  make  it 
fit  the  ends  of  Chicago  business  and  a  definite  effort  should  be  made 
to  provide  courses  capable  of  fitting  men  to  work  rapidly  into 
directive  positions. 

The  two  schemes  of  commercial  education  suggested  above  are 
the  types  in  use  in  the  high  schools  in  other  large  cities  in  the  United 
States.  The  separate  high  school  of  commerce  is  used  in  Boston 
and  Cleveland.  The  commercial  department  for  all  high  schools  in 
the  city  is  used  in  St.  Louis,  and  will  be  adopted  in  Cincinnati  in  the 
coming  year. 

The  Boston  High  School  of  Commerce 

The  Boston  school  has  been  established  since  1908.  It  was  organ- 
ized in  the  first  place  in  1907  by  a  committee  of  twenty-five  business 
men  whose  recommendation  was  immediately  accepted  by  the  school 
board.  This  was  the  first  cooperation  for  commercial  education 
between  business  men  and  school  authorities  in  the  United  States. 

The  course  of  instruction  is  twofold  in  character.  In  the  first 
place,  the  general  high-school  subjects  are  taught  to  provide  the 
student  with  general  knowledge  and  to  prepare  him  for  college,  if 
he  so  desires ;  and  in  the  second  place  these  general  subjects  are 
taught  with  an  eye  to  their  value  in  commercial  and  business  work- 
while  a  special  commercial  training  of  the  most  thorough  character 
is  provided. 

Separate  departments  are  maintained  with  separate  heads  who 
take  the  responsibility  for  their  departments  and  share  in  the  execu- 
tive work  of  the  school.     These  departments  are  first,  that  of  Busi- 


246  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

ness  Technic,  where  classes  in  Bookkeeping,  Phonography  (stenogra- 
phy) and  Typewriting  are  taught ;  second,  a  department  of  Eco- 
nomics and  History  covering  commercial  geography,  business 
organization,  commercial  law,  local  industries,  economic  history  and 
economics,  civics  and  general  political  history ;  third,  an  English 
Department  where  general  English  literature  and  general  English 
composition  are  taught  together  with  special  business  composition 
including  work  in  advertisement  writing;  fourth,  a  Department  of 
Mathematics,  where  in  addition  to  the  high-school  subjects  of 
algebra,  geometry  and  trigonometry  drills  in  commercial  arithmetic 
are  required ;  fifth,  the  modern  Language  Department,  giving 
instruction  in  French,  German  and  Spanish.  The  purpose  is  to 
enable  a  student  to  read,  write  and  speak  easily  and  correctly  at  least 
two  of  these  languages.  The  reading  includes  newspapers,  market 
reports,  business  circulars  and  advertisements.  In  composition  com- 
mercial correspondence  is  a  leading  feature.  Finally  the  Science 
Department  includes  physical  geography,  physics,  elementary  chem- 
istry and  what  is  called  vocational  chemistry,  a  study  of  the  applica- 
tion of  chemistry  to  the  special  requirements  of  the  industries  of 
Boston. 

The  course  is  ordinarily  completed  in  four  years  and  somewhere 
during  the  course  the  boys  are  expected  to  put  in  part  time  in  actual 
business  work.  For  this  purpose,  a  very  complete  cooperation  with 
the  business  houses  of  Boston  has  been  brought  about ;  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1909,  50  per  cent  of  the  second-year  class,  77  per  cent  of  the 
third-year  class,  and  70  per  cent  of  the  fourth-year  class  were  pro- 
vided with  summer  work  by  the  business  houses.  Boys  go  into  the 
lines  which  they  wish  to  follow  and  to  which  they  are  recommended 
by  the  instructors.  When  they  return  to  school  in  the  fall,  the  state- 
ments of  their  summer  employers  are  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the 
instructors.  In  this  way,  complete  record  of  each  boy's  work  is  kept 
and  a  close  estimate  of  his  capability  is  available  at  all  times.  This 
system  of  cooperation  has  proved  very  satisfactory ;  it  provides  the 
boys  with  experience  and  an  opportunity  for  permanent  employment 
and  provides  the  business  houses  with  the  opportunity  of  securing 
the  service  of  capable  and  ambitious  young  men. 

In  addition  to  the  four-year  course,  a  fifth  year  of  special  work 
is  given  in  which  a  more  advanced  line  of  commercial  instruction  is 
taken  up. 

A  valuable  addition  to  the  course  has  been  made  in  the  form  of 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  247 

traveling  scholarships  provided  by  a  number  of  Boston  business 
men  to  send  two  boys  yearly  to  South  America,  Central  America,  or 
the  West  Indies,  to  investigate  and  report  upon  the  industries  of 
these  countries.  A  competitive  examination  open  to  members  of  the 
graduating  class  is  the  basis  of  selection.  The  results  of  the  trip 
made  in  1908  fully  justify  the  expectations  of  the  founders  of  the 
scholarships,  and  the  business  men's  committee  consider  it  an  impor- 
tant part  of  the  work. 

The  registration  in  the  Boston  High  School  of  Commerce  has 
increased  each  year,  and  the  nature  of  the  work  is  such  that  the 
number  of  students  returning  each  year  is  a  very  large  percentage 
of  the  total  enrolment.  The  work  has  been  so  successful  and  so 
satisfactory  that  a  larger  number  of  pupils  is  attracted  than  can 
be  taken  care  of. 

In  addition,  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  has  asked  that  other 
courses  for  employees,  especially  in  salesmanship,  be  established  in 
the  school.  The  employers  give  each  employee  three  hours  per  day 
for  twelve  weeks  to  follow  these  courses. 

The  commercial  work  still  continues  in  the  other  city  high 
schools,  but  it  should  be  noticed  that  the  competition  of  the  high 
school  of  commerce  has  served  to  stimulate  the  business  courses  of 
the  high  schools  and  has  made  them  more  effective. 

Mr.  F.  V.  Thompson,  the  head  master  of  the  Boston  High  School 
of  Commerce,  is  convinced  that  this  work  could  not  be  carried  on 
by  a  departmental  system  in  the  regular  high  schools. 

The  Cleveland  High  School  of  Commerce 

The  Cleveland  High  School  of  Commerce  is  conducted  on  the 
same  plan  as  that  of  the  Boston  High  School  of  Commerce  and  was 
organized  in  practically  the  same  way.  The  school  was  opened  in 
the  fall  of  1909,  in  response  to  an  active  demand  by  the  business 
men  of  the  city  of  Cleveland. 

An  advisory  committee  of  thirty  business  men  not  only  helped 
in  the  preparation  of  the  courses  of  study,  but  served  as  a  committee 
of  visitation  and  inspection.  The  course  is  designed  to  cover  four 
years  (i.  e.,  twelve  terms  of  three  months  each)  and  the  work  is 
divided  between  a  number  of  departments. 

In  the  English  department,  reading  includes  study  of  newspapers 
and  magazine  articles  on  commercial  subjects  and  especially  the  use 
of  trade  journals.    In  composition  the  aim  is  efficiency  for  commer- 


248  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

rial  ends.  In  modern  languages  special  attention  is  directed  to 
speaking  and  correspondence  and  the  attainment  of  a  technical 
vocabulary.  In  mathematics  considerable  emphasis  is  laid  on  arith- 
metic, of  course,  and  on  practical  applications  of  algebra  and 
geometry.  In  the  last  term  practical  problems  in  the  cost  of  rent, 
of  transportation,  or  production  and  distribution,  storage,  shipping 
and  advertising,  etc.,  are  given.  The  work  in  bookkeeping  is  very 
complete,  including  the  theory  and  technic  of  bookkeeping  in 
approved  modern  systems  and  giving  special  attention  to  banking, 
corporation  and  railroad  accounting  and  auditing.  The  other  depart- 
ments are  those  of  shorthand  and  typewriting,  penmanship,  com- 
mercial geography,  history  of  commerce  and  American  history, 
civics  and  municipal  government,  political  economy,  commercial 
law,  physiology  and  hygiene,  botany,  chemistry  and  physics  with 
especial  attention  to  their  application  to  commercial  and  manufac- 
turing interests. 

Like  the  Boston  school,  the  Cleveland  school  maintains  a  com- 
mercial museum,  showing  the  different  raw  materials  and  processes 
of  manufacture ;  lectures  by  specialists  actively  engaged  in  the 
work  of  manufacturing  and  trade  are  given,  and  excursions  are  con- 
ducted through  large  manufacturing  and  business  plants.  It  is 
expected  that  by  cooperation  with  the  business  men  of  the  city, 
arrangements  for  periods  of  actual  business  practice  will  be  pro- 
vided for  the  students  who  complete  the  courses. 

In  both  Cleveland  and  Boston  the  teachers  who  are  usually 
graduates  of  colleges,  universities  and  normal  schools,  as  well  as  of 
business  colleges,  have  had  large  experience  in  teaching,  and  nearly 
all  have  had  business  experience,  in  many  cases  extending  over  a 
number  of  years.  In  addition  several  are  authors  of  text-books  on 
commercial  subjects. 

It  is  too  early  yet  to  report  upon  the  results  of  the  first  year 
of  the  Cleveland  school,  but  it  confidently  can  be  predicted  that  the 
Cleveland  experience  will  duplicate  that  of  Boston  in  its  commercial 
high  school. 

Commercial  courses  in  St.  Louis  high  schools 

St.  Louis  presents  the  most  striking  example  of  the  maintenance 
of  commercial  departments  in  the  regular  high  schools.  Separate 
commercial  work  has  been  maintained  since  the  fall  of  1909.     The 


SUMMARY  OF  RESULTS  249 

commercial  courses  are  optional.  Students  in  the  two-year  voca- 
tional courses  may  elect  vocational  subjects  in  addition  to  those 
scheduled  in  the  first  and  second  years  of  the  four-year  commer- 
cial course. 

The  vocational  course,  as  it  is  called,  continues  for  two  years 
and  at  the  end  of  that  time  those  who  complete  the  course  are  given 
a  certificate.  In  1909-10  one-third  elected  commercial  work  of  one 
kind  or  another  and  about  one-fourth  elected  regular  vocational 
courses.  This  plan  meets  the  demands  of  many  students  for  a  short 
business  course  which  enables  them  to  go  early  into  practical  work. 
Those  who  wish,  however,  can  continue  for  the  full  four  years  in 
advanced  work  in  subjects  previously  studied  together  with  work 
in  more  advanced  subjects. 

The  curriculum  includes,  of  course,  penmanship,  commercial 
arithmetic,  strong  courses  in  bookkeeping,  courses  in  commercial  law 
and  geography,  and  courses  in  stenography  and  typewriting  in  which 
emphasis  is  laid  upon  the  necessity  of  time  for  practice. 

There  is  no  separate  commercial  department  in  the  schools  of 
St.  Louis.  There  is  no  separate  department  head  and  no  separate 
corps  of  commercial  teachers,  feeling  the  responsibility  for  the  suc- 
cess of  their  departments.  Coordination  and  correlation  of  work 
of  the  different  schools  is  obtained  through  a  series  of  committees 
composed  of  teachers  from  the  different  high  schools.  Each  subject 
is  in  charge  of  the  committee  made  up  of  one  teacher  of  that  subject 
from  each  high  school.  In  charge  of  all  of  these  committees  is  a 
general  committee. 

Since  the  St.  Louis  plan  has  been  in  use  also  only  one  year,  no 
statement  can  be  made  as  to  the  results.  St.  Louis  has  consciously 
rejected  the  separate  commercial  high-school  plan  and  defends  its 
action  on  the  grounds  that  those  who  are  trained  in  a  general  high 
school  are  more  adaptable,  and  that  such  training  avoids  the  "  false 
distinctions  of  social  and  intellectual  value  that  results  from  segre- 
gating pupils  in  separate  school  buildings  according  to  the  different 
lines  of  work  that  interest  and  occupy  them." 

They  maintain  that  specialized  training,  while  it  makes  the  best 
piece  workers,  produces  this  specialized  ability  at  the  expense  of  the 
general  ability.  Moreover,  it  is  said  that  the  public-school  system 
should  put  before  the  youths  as  nearly  as  possible  "  the  many  things 
that  engage  the  interests  and  activities  of  men  in  different  walks  of 
life,"  and  that  specialized  high  schools  give  no  chance  for  observation 


250  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

or  comparison  in  making  a  choice  of  the  work  to  be  followed  in  after 
life.  The  student  beginning  in  commercial  high  schools  and  then 
changing  his  mind,  finds  it  difficult  to  transfer  to  another  high  school 
and  can  not  do  it  at  all  without  considerable  loss  of  credit.  Transfer 
in  a  general  high  school  from  one  course  to  another  is  made  with  a 
minimum  amount  of  loss.  The  further  claim  is  made  that  the  gen- 
eral high  school  is  more  economical  in  that  it  is  nearer  to  the  indi- 
vidual's home.  With  a  central  high  school  of  commerce  all  those 
taking  commercial  courses  must  come  to  one  place  from  all  parts 
of  the  city ;  with  the  other  plan  the  student  can  go  to  the  one  near- 
est his  residence. 

Commercial  courses  in  Cincinnati  high  schools 

Cincinnati  offers  in  1910-11  for  the  first  time  a  separate  commer- 
cial course.  This  work  was  undertaken  after  consultation  with  suc- 
cessful business  men  of  Cincinnati  and  with  their  hearty  cooperation. 
The  Cincinnati  plan  follows  in  general  the  St.  Louis  type  except 
that  there  is  a  separate  director  of  commercial  work  in  each  high 
school  who  is  almost  wholly  independent  of  the  regular  principal. 
The  director  outlines  the  course  of  study,  supervises  the  instruction, 
and  teachers  and  students  report  to  him.  Through  him  the  coordi- 
nation of  all  departments  is  maintained  and  it  is  expected  that  a 
general  director  of  commercial  work  will  serve  the  same  office  for  all 
high  schools.  The  subjects  are  much  the  same  as  those  in  the  other 
high  schools.  Cincinnati,  however,  like  St.  Louis,  provides  consid- 
erable practice  time  in  stenography,  typewriting  and  bookkeeping. 

Of  these  four  schools,  the  Boston  school  is  obviously  the  best 
organized,  farthest  advanced,  and  probably  the  most  successful.  It 
is  designed  to  meet  the  special  needs  of  Boston,  and  while  it  is  in 
every  sense  a  technical  school,  it  still  attempts  to  provide  for  those 
who  wish  to  continue  their  work  in  colleges.  In  a  large  commercial 
city  like  Chicago  there  are  good  reasons  for  establishing  a  separate 
high  school  of  commerce  and  offering  commercial  courses  also  in  the 
general  high  schools.  The  experience  of  Boston  with  this  plan 
shows  that  the  courses  in  the  general  high  schools  are  much  improved 
by  the  influence  of  the  work  done  by  the  separate  school,  which 
serves  as  an  experiment  station  to  work  out  a  content  and  method 
for  commercial  courses.  The  comments  of  business  men  of  Chi- 
cago, given  in  Chapter  XI,  reveal  a  strong  demand  from  this  source 
for  the  separate  school. 


SOLICITATION  BY  PRIVATE  COMMERCIAL  SCHOOLS      251 


CHAPTER    X 

SOLICITATION  BY  PRIVATE  COMMERCIAL  SCHOOLS 

IN   CHICAGO 


Solicitation  of  pupils  and  parents  by  agents  of  private  commer- 
cial and  business  schools  is  widespread  in  Chicago.  It  is  the  opinion 
of  the  writer  that  in  this  practice  and  its  results  can  be  found  to 
some  extent  the  answers  to  three  questions  which  have  been  fre- 
quently asked : 

Why  do  so  few  pupils  enter  the  high  schools  of  the  city  ? 

Why  does  such  a  large  percentage  of  high-school  pupils  drop 
out  early  in  the  course? 

Why  are  the  commercial  schools  so  severely  criticized  by  the 
business  men  of  the  city,  in  whose  offices  the  students  from  these 
schools  find  employment? 

The  following  evidence  bears  out  the  statement  made  above  and 
shows  that  the  solicitor  for  the  business  college  is  a  serious  evil  in 
the  community. 

Extent  of  this  evil 

There  are  in  Chicago  forty-two  or  more  private  commercial 
schools  or  so-called  "  business  colleges/'  purporting  to  train  boys  and 
girls  of  the  city  who  wish  to  prepare  themselves  for  wage-earning 
in  clerical  and  office  positions. 

It  has  not  been  possible  to  obtain  an  authoritative  statement  of 
the  attendance  upon  these  schools.  But  few  of  the  Chicago  business 
colleges  responded  to  the  request  of  the  United  States  Commissioner 
of  Education,  that  they  send  school  reports  into  his  office.  Direct 
requests  made  by  the  writer  have  received  replies  in  only  a  few 
instances.  It  has  been  necessary,  therefore,  to  estimate  this  attend- 
ance, making  use  of  such  figures  as  have  been  given  and  reported, 
and  of  the  judgment  of  business  college  men  and  others  who 
are  familiar  with  these  schools.  This  estimate  is  an  attendance  of 
at  least  19,000  pupils  for  the  last  year.     In  the  opinion  of  no  one 


252  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

who  has  been  consulted  has  this  number  seemed  too  large.  There 
is  reason  to  believe  that  it  is  an  underestimate  rather  than  an  over- 
estimate. 

What  the  solicitors  are  doing 

Most  of  the  solicitors  for  these  schools  are  working  on  a  com- 
mission basis  and  tend,  therefore,  to  be  more  interested  in  securing 
the  students  than  they  are  in  telling  the  truth  ;  in  the  amount  of 
business  they  secure  than  in  the  maturity  or  fitness  of  the  pupils 
they  solicit.  In  very  many  cases  the  pupils,  even  from  the  fifth 
grade  and  up,  are  induced  to  leave  the  public  schools  for  the  pur- 
pose of  taking  a  course  in  some  business  college.  Pupils  are  solicited 
who  have  no  adaptability  for  commercial  training. 

Many  students  are  secured  by  means  of  what  must  be  regarded 
as  misrepresentation  on  the  part  of  the  solicitor.  They  promise  the 
prospective  student  a  job  at  the  end  of  his  short  term  of  study. 
They  draw  attention  to  the  fact  that  certain  students  have  completed 
courses  of  study  in  a  short  period  of  time  and  are  now  holding  good 
positions.  Some  of  them  who  enroll  have  sufficient  native  ability  or 
have  received  such  previous  training  that  they  are  enabled  to  com- 
plete the  work  in  the  promised  time  and  hold  a  job  when  secured. 
The  solicitor  uses  these  examples  as  a  bait  to  catch  others  who 
have  not  these  qualifications.  No  guarantee  is  given  that  the  student 
will  be  able  to  hold  a  position,  and  many  take  places  only  to  lose 
them  because  they  are  incompetent. 

When  the  standard  of  those  who  seek  clerical  and  office  work 
is  as  low  as  that  to  which  our  business  men  testify,  it  is  not  difficult 
to  promise  some  sort  of  a  place  to  the  graduate  of  a  six  months' 
course.  This  superficial  training,  especially  when  it  has  been  added 
to  an  incomplete  elementary  schooling,  does  not  lead  to  later  success, 
but  condemns  the  boy  or  girl  to  the  low  wages  and  drudgery  which 
are  the  necessary  lot  of  the  inefficient. 

Thus  the  guarantee  of  a  position  after  a  short  term  of  study  in 
a  business  college  becomes  a  source  of  positive  injury  to  the  children 
whom  it  attracts,  and  is  at  the  same  time  ruining  excellent  material. 
For  the  same  children  might,  after  the  completion  of  the  elementary 
period  with  adequate  business  training,  become  efficient  clerks  and 
stenographers,  able  to  gain  a  higher  wage  and  take  higher  positions. 

That  such  children  are  being  solicited  and  enticed  from  the  pub- 
lic schools  in  all  parts  of  our  city  is  a  fact  that  is  affirmed  by  every 


SOLICITATION  BY  PRIVATE  COMMERCIAL  SCHOOLS       253 

public-school  principal  whose  opinion  was  sought  in  the  investigation 
of  this  problem. 

Statements  made  by  high-school  teachers 

A  high-school  teacher  states  : 

As  the  most  evident  reason  why  pupils  from  the  grammar  schools  go 
to  the  private  business  schools  rather  than  to  the  public  high  school,  may 
be  given  to  the  work  done  among  grammar-school  pupils  of  the  upper  grades 
and  their  parents  by  the  solicitors  of  the  business  schools.  Even  without 
other  reasons,  this  would  be  a  strong  force  in  turning  the  tide.  In  our  city 
these  business  schools  obtain  complete  lists  of  pupils  in  each  of  the  upper 
grades,  as  well  as  of  pupils  in  the  high  schools  (one  can  not  say  how),  and 
their  solicitors  canvass  these  families  thoroughly  and  repeatedly,  setting 
forth  the  advantages  of  a  course  in  a  business  school,  and  the  loss  of  time  in 
attending  high  school.  This  work  would  not  be  as  effective  as  it  is  were 
they  not  able  to  convince  parents  and  pupils  that  the  business  college  offers 
a  short  cut  to  wage-earning.  What  I  have  said  was  exemplified  again  to-day 
in  the  dropping  out  of  one  of  my  best  pupils,  through  the  persuasion  of  the 
business-school  solicitor,  that  many  of  the  high-school  studies  were  time 
thrown  away,  and  clinching  the  argument  by  inducing  the  parent  to  make  a 
payment  down  toward  the  tuition,  so  that  there  should  be  no  chance  for 
reconsideration. 

A  high-school  teacher  of  stenography  says : 

The  business  colleges  are  indefatigable  in  their  efforts  to  secure  the  pupils 
as  low  down  as  the  fourth  grade ;  the  names  of  pupils  are  obtained,  the 
solicitor  visits  their  homes  and  makes  plain  to  the  parents  that  it  will  cost 
no  more  to  send  a  pupil  to  the  paid  business  college  a  shorter  time,  than  to 
support  him  in  high  school  for  a  longer  time,  with  the  added  benefit  that 
he  will  at  the  end  of  a  course  in  a  business  college  be  capable  of  holding 
a  position,  and,  moreover,  be  placed  in  a  position  of  self-support.  Almost 
every  pupil  from  a  business  college  is  "  taken  care  of  "  in  that  way,  no  matter 
from  what  course  he  graduates,  and  irrespective  of  the  degree  of  efficiency 
which  he  has  attained. 

Testimony  from  pupils  in  the  first  year  of  high  school 

No  one  is  better  able  to  give  testimony  concerning  the  extent  and 
success  of  this  solicitation  than  the  boys  and  girls  who  have  been 
approached  by  these  solicitors  with  a  view  of  inducing  them  to  leave 
the  public  schools.  In  ten  high  schools  located  in  various  sections 
of  the  city,  862  pupils  in  the  first  year  of  the  high  school  were  asked 
to  write  a  theme  on  "  Why  do  not  more  pupils  enter  the  high  schools 
of  our  city?"    The  number  of  reasons  in  these  themes  varies  from 


254  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

two  or  three  to  a  dozen.  But  it  is  an  interesting  fact  that  565  of 
these  pupils  give,  as  a  leading  reason,  the  work  of  the  business  col- 
lege agents.    Quotations  from  a  few  of  the  themes  are  given  below : 

Another  reason  is  because  some  parents  think  that  a  business  college 
offers  a  child  a  better  business  education  in  a  shorter  while  than  high  school. 
Perhaps  parents  wouldn't  be  so  much  against  high  school  if  it  were  not  for 
the  agents  that  come  around  and  persuade  many  parents  to  let  their  children 
go  to  business  college,  because  the  agent  claims  that  they  thoroughly  educate 
them  and  set  them  to  work. 

The  business  colleges  of  our  city  are  trying  to  draw  all  the  pupils  to 
their  schools  by  distributing  advertisements  all  over  the  city,  describing  their 
methods  of  teaching  and  flattering  their  school  too  much. 

I  think  the  reason  that  more  pupils  do  not  enter  high  schools  is  that  the 
business-college  agents  urge  most  of  the  grammar-school  graduates  to  go  to 
business  college.  There  were  about  ten  agents  who  came  to  my  house  last 
summer  who  claimed  that  it  was  foolish  to  spend  four  years  of  your  valuable 
time  in  high  school  when  you  could  learn  just  as  much  in  one  year  in  their 
college. 

The  business  colleges  send  out  agents  who  promise  everything.  If  they 
(the  children)  will  just  go  to  college  for  six  or  eight  months,  they  promise 
to  secure  them  a  good  job.  The  children,  being  very  anxious  to  earn  money, 
beg  and  fuss  until  their  parents  finally  consent  to  let  them  enter  business 
college  instead  of  the  high  school. 

School  pupils  who  have  a  chance  to  choose  between  high  school  and  col- 
lege are  generally  encouraged  to  attend  college  by  men  who  entice  them 
before  they  graduate  from  grammar  school,  so  they  are  turned  from  high 
school.  There  is  no  one  going  from  house  to  house  telling  of  things  they 
have  in  high  school,  and  people  don't  bother  to  find  out.  I  have  had  this 
same  experience,  only  that  my  father,  being  a  well-educated  man  and  holding 
a  good  position,  knew  different,  and  I  was  compelled  to  go  to  high  school. 

I  think  one  of  the  greatest  enemies  of  the  high  schools  are  the  agents 
that  go  around  for  business  colleges.  These  men  persuade  the  mothers  of 
pupils  to  send  their  children  to  business  college.  They  even  go  so  far  as  to 
say  that  high  schools  are  a  waste  of  time  and  money.  The  mothers  are  made 
to  have  this  same  thought,  and  sign  a  contract  before  consulting  any  one 
else.    This  forces  the  pupils  to  go  to  business  colleges. 

In  the  early  part  of  June  and  the  latter  of  January,  when  the  list  of 
graduates  from  the  grammar  schools  is  known,  solicitors  from  business  col- 
leges find  out  the  names  of  the  pupils  and  come  to  their  house  or  mail  a 
letter  to  coax  the  parents  to  allow  their  children  to  enter  the  business  colleges. 

Other  parents  are  influenced  by  the  business-college  agents,  who  tell 
them  how  many  pupils  that  stay  at  a  business  college  a  few  months  learn  as 
much  as  a  high-school  graduate,  and  at  the  end  of  a  certain  time  this  business 
college  will  get  him  a  good  position.  The  parents,  believing  what  the  agents 
say,  send  their  children  to  a  business  college. 


SOLICITATION  BY  PRIVATE  COMMERCIAL  SCHOOLS       255 

Testimony  from  pupils  in  the  fourth  year  of  high  school 

Of  491  papers  written  by  these  pupils  on  the  subject  "  Why  do 
pupils  drop  out  of  high  schools,"  341  give  as  leading  reasons  the 
alluring  advertisements  of  the  business  colleges  promising  a  posi- 
tion, and  the  work  of  the  solicitors  of  these  schools. 

Business  colleges  of  to-day  take  away  a  number  of  the  pupils  of  the  high 
school.  The  college  convinces  the  parents  that  one  who  has  gone  through 
their  school  is  able  to  procure  a  larger  salary  than  one  who  has  gone  through 
the  high  schools. 

The  business  colleges  of  the  city  advertise  widely,  offering  to  give  a  per- 
son an  excellent  business  education  within  three  or  six  months,  and  to  fur- 
nish him  with  a  position  at  the  end  of  that  time.  Many  pupils,  convinced  by 
the  agents  that  the  education  received  at  these  colleges  is  as  good  as  a  full 
high-school  course,  leave  the  schools  to  avail  themselves  of  the  opportunity 
to  be  earning  their  own  living  within  such  a  short  time. 

The  business  college  is  about  the  first  to  attract  the  pupils'  attention. 
Sometimes  before  they  have  thought  of  leaving  high  school  this  institution 
has  obtained  them.  This  is  due  to  the  agents  for  these  schools.  Just  the 
other  day  one  of  these  agents  called  at  our  house  and  tried  to  persuade  me 
to  drop  high-school  work  and  go  to  the  business  college.  In  his  eager  desire 
to  win  pupils  for  his  school  he  went  so  far  as  to  run  down  high  schools  and 
colleges.  If  a  person  were  easily  persuaded  they  would  be  won.  The  busi- 
ness college  usually  takes  the  children  of  the  more  unlettered  class  of  people 
away  from  high  school. 

The  business  colleges  send  inviting  notices  to  as  many  addresses  as  they 
can  get,  telling  the  pupils  of  the  wonderful  advantages  there  are  in  taking 
a  business  course  at  once.  Instead  of  spending  four  years  at  high  school 
they  will  only  have  to  take  a  few  months'  course  in  the  college.  This  time 
is  always  made  as  short  as  possible  in  the  letters,  but  one  can  never  tell  how 
long  the  course  will  be  in  reality. 

When  a  boy  or  girl  first  graduates  from  grammar  school,  and  for  months 
before,  agents  of  the  various  business  colleges  are  constantly  dinning  into  his 
ears  the  advantages  of  a  business  education.  All  through  the  high-school 
course  the  stream  of  postals  and  advertisements  continues.  Allured  by  the 
promises  of  bright  prospects  and  a  position  guaranteed,  the  pupils  drop  out 
and  go  to  business  college,  usually  to  regret  it  later. 

What  the  proprietors  say 

We  add  the  opinions  of  the  proprietors  of  three  business  colleges 
in  Chicago  who  either  do  not  solicit,  or  condemn  the  practice,  but 
still  make  use  of  it  because  they  feel  compelled  to  by  the  competition 
of  the  schools  who  do  solicit. 

One  proprietor  says : 

Business-college  training  in  Chicago  is  in  large  measure  a  failure,  because 
of    soliciting    children,    and    employing    teachers    who    lack    training.      Poor 


256  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

foundation,  poor  teachers  and  text-books  which  produce  the  largest  cash 
dividend  are  not  conducive  to  efficient  office  help.  I  will  welcome  the  day 
when  every  young  man  and  woman  who  needs  and  wants  commercial  train- 
ing can  get  it  without  having  to  pay  the  fee  charged  by  special  schools. 

Another  reputable  proprietor  says  : 

The  reasons  why  the  business  colleges  of  our  city  are  putting  out  such 
an  immature  product  and  foisting  it  upon  our  business  men  are  these :  Many 
of  the  proprietors  care  more  for  the  dollars  received  as  tuition  than  the  kind 
of  training  they  are  giving ;  because  of  solicitation,  we  are  getting  our  pupils 
too  young  and  immature ;  the  high  cost  of  solicitation  renders  it  impossible 
to  provide  high-class  instructors. 

Still  another  says : 

We  will  get  just  as  much  business  if  we  let  the  students  alone  until  they 
are  two  or  three  years  older.  We  would  have  more  students  if  we  would 
abolish  soliciting  and  apply  that  large  drain  to  the  building  up  of  our  schools, 
making  our  rooms  more  attractive,  securing  more  efficient  instruction.  These 
are  the  things  that  make  any  school  and  give  it  a  reputable  standing.  I 
would  abolish  soliciting  to-morrow  if  I  could. 

The  cost  of  solicitation 

We  have  direct  testimony  from  four  business  college  proprietors 
of  the  city  that  the  various  commercial  schools  expend  from  25  to 
33}/3  per  cent  of  their  gross  receipts  in  the  solicitation  of  their  stu- 
dents. This  draft  on  the  income  of  these  schools  affects  the  quality 
of  the  teaching  force  and  the  salaries  which  are  paid  to  the  teachers. 
These  facts  together  with  the  work  of  solicitation  itself  in  securing 
immature  and  unfitted  pupils  account  to  a  great  extent  for  the  low 
grade  of  efficiency  of  the  average  pupil  who  completes  the  courses 
of  study,  as  shown  by  the  testimony  of  business  men  of  Chicago.1 

Cost  of  tuition 

It  has  been  estimated  on  the  basis  of  19,000  pupils  and  the  aver- 
age cost  of  tuition  in  the  commercial  schools,  that  the  citizens  of 
Chicago  pay  one  million  four  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  dol- 
lars ($1,425,000)  every  year  in  tuition  to  private  business  colleges, 
concerning  the  character  of  which  they  know  little  or  nothing.  This 
vast  sum  of  money  is  given  to  schools  which  are  under  the  juris- 
diction of  no  educational  authority.  There  are  no  restrictions  con- 
cerning the  capabilities  of  the  teachers,  the  character  of  instruction, 

1  See  Chapter  XI. 


SOLICITATION  BY  PRIVATE  COMMERCIAL  SCHOOLS       257 

or  schoolroom  sanitation.  The  unwholesome  conditions  surrounding 
the  pupils  in  some  of  these  schools  warrant  their  inspection  by  the 
City  Board  of  Health.  They  should  be  compelled  to  install  proper 
systems  of  ventilation,  to  exercise  greater  care  in  sanitation,  and  to 
limit  the  number  of  pupils  confined  to  each  room,  that  the  amount 
of  breathing  space  may  be  provided  which  is  required  for  the  health 
and  physical  welfare  of  their  pupils. 


IS 


258  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER    XI 

ATTITUDE   OF   BUSINESS    MEN 


As  a  means  of  getting  a  basis  for  an  estimate  of  the  output  of 
commercial  educational  institutions,  public  and  private,  of  the  city, 
three  hundred  lists  of  questions  bearing  on  different  phases  of  the 
subject  of  commercial  education  were  mailed  to  leading  merchants, 
tradesmen,  employment  agents  of  the  large  department  stores,  rail- 
road offices  and  mail-order  houses. 

The  replies  to  these  questions  contain  valuable  suggestions  as  to 
the  quality  of  work  done  by  boys  and  girls  in  offices  after  they  have 
taken  commercial  training  in  business  colleges  and  in  public  high 
schools.  They  indicate  in  a  very  emphatic  way  many  defects  of  the 
present  system  of  training,  both  public  and  private. 

Below  are  given  the  seven  questions,  with  the  replies  to  them, 
together  with  some  quotations  from  the  letters  received. 

i.  Do  you  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  efficient  clerical  or  office 
employees? 

86.2  per  cent  have  difficulty  in  obtaining  efficient  employees. 
11.1  per  cent  have  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  efficient  employees. 
2.7  per  cent  have  some  difficulty  in  obtaining  efficient  employees. 

2.  (a)  Do  you  find  that  the  pupils  who  have  taken  commercial 
studies  in  our  high  schools  are  generally  efficient  as  clerical  or 
office  employees? 

60  per  cent  reply  that  high-school  pupils  are  not  efficient. 

16%  per  cent  reply  that  high-school  pupils  are  efficient. 

13  3/3  per  cent  reply  that  high-school  pupils  are  fairly  efficient. 

10  per  cent  reply  that  they  had  had  no  experience  with  high- 
school  commercial  pupils. 

2.     (b)   If  not,  what  defects  are  most  striking? 

Generally  illegible  penmanship. 

Deficient  general  education. 

Lack  of  thorough  training  in  English. 

Poor  penmanship,  inability  to  figure  easily  and  correctly. 

Know  practically  nothing  of  accounting. 


ATTITUDE  OF  BUSINESS  MEN  259 

Not  thorough  in  anything. 

No  foundation.     Lacking  in  the  three  R's.     Need  special  training. 

Lack  of  thoroughness  in  their  training  in  penmanship,  grammar  and 
arithmetic.  There  is  also  much  to  he  desired  in  most  instances  in  the  matter 
of  deportment. 

The  most  noticeable  defects  are  bad  penmanship  and  absolute  ignorance 
of  practical  business  methods.  Apparently  the  high  schools  pay  little,  if  any, 
attention  to  good  penmanship,  although  in  the  matter  of  bookkeeping,  card- 
indexing  or  record-work  of  any  description,  the  ability  to  write  a  neat,  rapid 
and  legible  hand  is  a  sine  qua  non.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  at  least  seventy-five 
per  cent  of  the  students  who  graduate  from  Chicago  high  schools  are  indif- 
ferent penmen.  It  is  also  noticeable  that  high-school  graduates  apparently 
have  little  training  in  the  practical  details  of  such  officework  as  a  junior 
clerk  should  be  familiar  with,  such  as  filing,  card-indexing,  operating  adding 
machines  and  comptometers,  billing,  etc. 

The  very  general  character  of  the  training  received  by  pupils  in  commer- 
cial colleges  or  commercial  courses  in  our  public  schools  renders  it  difficult 
for  the  pupil  to  apply  his  knowledge  in  business,  winch  in  practically  all 
lines  is  highly  specialized. 

We  have  tried  novices  both  from  high  school  and  business  college,  but 
have  decided  that  our  work  is  important  enough  to  pay  some  one  else  for 
breaking  in  help. 

Several  other  features  are  the  miserable  penmanship,  the  lack  of  knowl- 
edge of  mathematics,  or  rather  lack  of  knowing  how  to  apply  what  mathe- 
matics they  have  learned. 

With  over  twenty  years'  actual  experience  in  hiring  pupils  from  the 
Chicago  public  schools,  I  would  say  that  two  of  the  greatest  defects  with 
which  we  have  to  contend  in  this  class  of  employees  is  the  miserable  penman- 
ship and  lack  of  knowledge  of  ordinary  arithmetic. 

3.  (a)  Do  you  find  that  the  pupils  who  have  taken  commercial 
branches  in  the  private  commercial  colleges  of  our  city  are  generally 
efficient? 

80.6  per  cent  reply  that  these  pupils  are  not  efficient. 
16.1  per  cent  reply  that  these  pupils  are  efficient. 
3.3  per  cent  reply  that  these  pupils  are  fairly  efficient. 

(b)   If  not,  what  defects  are  most  striking? 

General  carelessness,  lack  of  training,  lower  grade  of  pupils. 

Poor  penmanship,  inability  to  figure  easily  and  correctly. 

Poor  spelling  and  English. 

Bad  penmanship,  absolute  ignorance  of  practical  business  methods.  The 
ability  to  write  a  neat,  rapid  and  legible  hand  is  sine  qua  non. 

The  whole  trouble  with  the  business  colleges  seems  to  be  involved  in 
their  academic  and  dilettante  system  of  teaching,  in  which  apparently  not 
much  effort  has  been  made  to  grasp  either  the  underlying  principles  or  the 


260  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

essential  details  of  practical  officework.  The  result  is  that  young  men  come 
to  our  company  feeling  "  cock  sure  "  of  their  abilities  after  taking  a  commer- 
cial course,  but  in  reality  are  densely  ignorant  of  the  most  ordinary  duties 
and  routing  of  officework  in  a  large  corporation. 

Miserable  penmanship  and  lack  of  knowledge  of  mathematics,  or  rather, 
lack  of  knowing  how  to  apply  what  mathematics  they  have  learned. 

The  very  general  character  and  inefficiency  of  the  training  received  by 
pupils  in  business  colleges  renders  it  difficult  for  them  to  apply  their  knowl- 
edge in  business,  which  in  practically  all  lines  is  highly  specialized. 

Lack  of  intelligence. 

Poor  composition  and  penmanship,  poor  training  and  deportment,  and 
lack  of  knowledge  of  fundamental  principles. 

Lack  of  practical  training. 

You  can  not  trust  them  with  your  correspondence  because  they  are  so 
poor  in  English. 

Carelessness  and  inattention.  A  graduate  of  a  business  college  told  me 
when  he  had  finished  the  course  in  banking  that  he  thought  he  could  run  a 
bank,  but  I  soon  found  that  he  could  not  balance  a  pass-book. 

Not  thorough  in  anything. 

Insufficient  instruction. 

Not  sufficient  time  given  for  preparation.     Poor  systems. 

Good  stenographers  are  in  demand  at  high  salaries,  but  there  are  too  few 
good  ones. 

Deficient  general  education. 

No  speed  and  too  mechanical. 

Lack  of  general  intelligence  and  mental  discipline. 

A  great  many  good  mechanics  are  spoiled  in  making  very  poor  clerks. 

Lacking  in  simple  English  —  construction  and  composition  —  and  often 
deceived  into  taking  a  course  too  early  when  too  young  and  unprepared. 

Very  deficient,  in  my  experience.  Can  not  spell  correctly.  Have  no  idea 
of  good  English. 

They  do  not  think  for  themselves  —  do  things  too  much  by  rote. 

There  is  an  appalling  ignorance  of  the  "  three  R's "  when  they  leave 
school,  and  most  commercial  colleges  accept  them  in  this  unprepared  and 
incompetent  condition  as  pupils.  They  emerge  from  these  colleges  as  ignorant 
of  elementary  education  as  they  went  in,  and  with  merely  a  cursory,  and  in  a 
general  way  hazy,  idea,  of  commercial  business  usages  and  customs.  The 
average  stenographer  and  typewriter  can  not  produce  from  their  badly  writ- 
ten shorthand  notes  a  correctly  spelled  or  grammatical  letter.  As  to  deport- 
ment, good  manners  and  polite  addresses,  these  seem  to  be  entirly  forgotten 
and  even  tabooed. 

4.  (a)  To  zuhat  extent,  in  your  judgment,  would  a  short 
course  of  at  least  two  years  in  length  in  the  public  high  school  giving 
a  specialized  and  intensive  training  in  commercial  branches  (book- 
keeping, stenography,  English,  penmanship,  etc.)  help  meet  the 
demand  for  efficient  employees  in  clerical  and  office  positions? 


ATTITUDE  OF  BUSINESS  MUX  261 

In  my  opinion,  such  a  course  would  be  very  valuable  if  administered 
under  the  supervision  of  experienced,  broadgauge  men  of  affairs,  who  are 
thoroughly  familiar  with  modern  business  practice  and  conditions.  Under 
these  conditions  the  sooner  the  boys  and  girls  can  be  started  on  such  a 
course  after  completing  their  grammar-school  education,  the  better,  as  it  will 
save  them  from  wasting  their  time  on  other  high-school  studies  of  conjectural 
value. 

To  a  great  extent,  if  general  and  widening  knowledge  can  be  secured  in 
conjunction  with  the  practical  application  of  special  knowledge. 

I  am  convinced  that  thousands  of  children  are  handicapped  in  their  start 
in  life  because  their  schooling  is  neglected  in  English,  language  and  composi- 
tion, including  spelling,  letter-writing  and  simple  bookkeeping,  and  because 
the  age  for  leaving  school  and  considering  their  schooling  finished  is  too 
young. 

The  course  should  include  penmanship,  arithmetic,  English  (including 
spelling  and  business  composition,  the  latter  of  a  character  tending  to  develop 
individual  thought  and  expression  and  not  along  stereotyped  forms),  com- 
mercial geography,  particularly  that  of  the  United  States,  which  would 
include  the  topography,  geology  and  agriculture  of  the  various  States,  as  well 
as  their  boundaries,  principal  cities,  etc.,  together  with  a  study  of  their  water- 
ways and  other  means  of  transportation. 

Commercial  work  has  become  so  specialized  that,  in  order  to  obtain  a 
position  at  a  fair  rate  of  pay,  it  is  necessary  to  handle  the  work  from  the 
first  day  of  employment.  A  high-school  graduate  very  rarely  can  write  well 
and  fast  enough,  and  is  not  capable  of  handling  figures  or  any  class  of  cleri- 
cal work  as  well  as  a  young  man  who  has  had  two  years'  training  on  that 
particular  line  of  work. 

This  course  should  be  provided  during  the  first  two  years  of  high-school 
work,  rather  than  in  the  last  two,  for  the  reason  that  a  much  smaller  number 
of  pupils  could  take  advantage  of  training  relegated  to  the  last  half  of  the 
four-years'  course,  and  the  ones  who  drop  out  at  the  end  of  the.  first  two 
years  are  the  ones  who  most  need  and  would  most  benefit  by  such  an  oppor- 
tunity. 

Why  can  not  there  be  a  four-year  commercial  course  with  the  work  so 
arranged  that  if  pupils  wish  at  the  end  of  two  years  to  go  to  work,  they 
will  be  fitted  for  something,  and  the  latter  part  of  the  course  so  arranged 
that  it  will  give  a  somewhat  broader  business  preparation  to  those  who 
remain? 

Very  much.  Add  to  these  efficient  training  in  addition,  subtraction  and 
multiplication,  with  the  understanding  that  graduates  are  qualified  to  start 
at  the  bottom  only.  If  carefully  and  efficiently  administered,  this  would  be 
an  excellent  foundation  for  a  commercial  career. 

It  should  help,  provided  the  work  were  based  on  actual  business,  and 
under  the  charge  of  experienced,  not  theoretical,  teachers. 

4.  (b)  Would  it  be  advisable  to  place  such  a  course  in  the  first 
two  years  of  the  high-school  curriculum/ 


262  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

73.2  per  cent  think  it  would  be  advisable  to  place  such  a  course 
in  the  first  two  years  of  the  high-school  curriculum. 

26.8  per  cent  think  it  would  be  advisable  in  the  last  two  years. 
The  explanation  of  these  percentages  has  been  given  under  4  (a). 

5.  (a)  Would  your  business  be  materially  benefited  if  your 
clerical  and  office  employees  had  the  advantage  of  a  broader  com- 
mercial training  than  is  offered  in  our  public  high  schools  or  private 
commercial  colleges? 

98  per  cent  reply  that  a  broader  commercial  training  than  is 
offered  in  the  public  high  schools  or  private  commercial  colleges 
would  be  of  material  benefit  to  business. 

2  per  cent  reply  that  it  would  not  be  of  material  benefit  to  busi- 
ness. 

(b)  What  suggestions  zvould  you  make  for  such  training  in  our 
public  high  school ? 

Probably  90  per  cent,  at  least,  of  the  product  of  our  school  system  look 
for  clerical  positions  first,  and  only  go  into  the  other  lines  of.  work  when 
forced  to  do  so  by  necessity.  This  would  be  very  laudable  if  they  were  all 
fitted  for  that  class  of  work,  but  as  a  matter  of  fact  a  great  many  good 
mechanics  are  spoiled  in  making  very  poor  clerks.  Employ  teachers  who  are 
experienced  men  in  the  line  of  work  they  are  teaching,  and  train  pupils  for 
that  line  of  work  for  which  they  are  suited. 

I  do  not  believe  that  a  commercial  course  in  all  public  high  schools  would 
prove  a  benefit,  but  would  rather  suggest  the  placing  of  these  branches  in 
three  centrally  located  high  schools  —  one  on  the  North  Side,  one  on  the 
West  Side  and  one  on  the  South  Side  —  where  commercial  branches  would 
be  taught  by  qualified  teachers,  and  the  course  specialized  by  teachers  who 
had  no  other  duties  than  those  of  the  commercial  course  to  perform. 

Would  it  not  be  advisable  to  institute  separate  classes  for  pupils  intend- 
ing to  enter  commercial  life  directly  from  high  school  along  the  lines  as  sug- 
gested in  your  question  No.  5  (c)  ? 

Business  courses  based  on  business  method  should  be  given  by  instructors 
who  know  business  methods. 

A  letter  filed  in  the  wrong  place  or  an  envelope  misdirected  means  a  loss 
in  time  and  money.  Teach  carefulness  to  boys.  Stronger  commercial  courses 
in  high  schools.  Public  school  commercial  training  in  Chicago  is  a  failure 
because  it  lacks  system,  time,  force  and  leaders. 

Broaden  and  intensify  the  course. 

Emphasis  on  necessity  of  good  writing,  mathematics  and  speed.  Also 
importance  of  developing  reasoning  faculty  so  that  the  pupil  knows  the  tvhy, 
with  the  object  of  acquiring  ability  to  master  new  situations  without  help. 
Make  minds  instead  of  machines. 

Establish  a  separate  high  school  of  commerce. 


ATTITUDE  OF  BUSINESS  MEN  263 

Would  suggest  a  course  distinctly  commercial. 

Pupils  should  be  taught  to  think  for  themselves.  Initiative  needed. 
Get  live,  practical  instructors  and  insist  on  thoroughness. 

Specialized  high  school  of  commerce.     Four-year  course. 

Church  schools  and  private  business  colleges  need  supervision  —  need  to 
be  standardized.  Is  it  not  public  schools  that  must  set  this  standard  in  our 
city?  I  believe  we  need  a  State  Educational  Commission  that  is  nonpartisan 
and  undenominational,  one  that  would  be  able  to  report  on  the  conditions 
of  the  private  and  church  educational  institutions,  and  set  a  standard  for 
the  teachers  and  for  the  school  curriculum. 

5.  (c)  What  is  your  opinion  as  to  a  central  high  school  of  com- 
merce for  such  training,  the  chief  idea  being  to  train  young  men  for 
competitive  opportunities  in  business f 

83^  per  cent  reply  that  it  would  be  a  good  thing. 
85/5  per  cent  reply  that  they  are  doubtful  as  to  its  utility. 
%Yz  per  cent  reply  that  they  have  no  opinion. 

With  efficient  instructors  and  sound  organization  such  a  school  would 
be  a  great  benefit. 

All  young  men  and  women  need  it. 

The  commercial  interests  of  this  great  city  deserve  such  a  step. 

Good  idea.  Such  a  school  should  be  kept  open  at  night.  It  would  be  a 
great  help  to  those  who  go  to  work  young  and  fail  to  get  the  high-school 
work. 

Good.     A  much-needed  change. 

It  should  also  give  opportunity  for  training  young  women. 

It  would  be  one  of  the  grandest  additions  to  education  which  Chicago 
has  ever  experienced.     Such  a  high  school  should  provide  a  four-year  course. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  it  would  be  a  vast  benefit  to  the  commercial  inter- 
ests of  Chicago.  I  believe,  however,  that  in  the  operation  of  such  a  school 
the  pupils'  preference  and  adaptability  should  be  carefully  considered ;  that 
the  school  should  be  operated  along  the  lines  of  "  specialty,"  and  that  the 
pupils  should  be  fitted  for  work  in  the  particular  line  they  are  found  suited 
for. 

I  am  not  prepared  to  answ.er  this. 

A  central  high  school  of  commerce,  if  open  to  all  grammar-school  grad- 
uates, would  be  of  great  value  if  it  could  be  kept  free  from  educational  fads 
and  devoted  to  business  methods.  Such  a  school,  to  fully  accomplish  its 
purpose,  should  be  under  the  control  of  practical  men  of  affairs ;  its  teachers 
should  be  men  of  actual  business  experience  in  their  several  lines,  and  the 
school  should  be  conducted  as  a  large  business  institution,  with  office  hours, 
rules  and  general  methods  of  procedure  identical  with  those  of  any  largo 
corporation. 

A  fine  thing,  if  advantages  of  high  school  and  commercial  college  are 
combined,  doing  away  with  the  vagueness  of  the  one  and  eliminating  the 
crudeness  of  the  other. 


264  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

It  would  seem  to  me  that  the  central  high  school  for  pupils  taking  a 
commercial  course  would  be  a  more  practical  way  of  handling  the  proposition 
than  in  the  various  high  schools.  If  so,  would  it  not  be  possible  to  have  a 
night  school  in  connection,  for  the  benefit  of  young  men  who  are  employed 
during  the  day  time,  and  possible  to  have  the  day  pupils  attend  the  night 
courses  during  certain  periods  and  have  a  general  exchange  of  ideas  among 
the  two  classes  of  pupils? 

6.  Do  you  think  that  a  free  employment  bureau,  organized  for 
the  benefit  of  the  pupils  of  public  schools,  fitted  for  clerical  and 
office  work,  would  be  an  advantage  to  business  men? 

84.4  per  cent  think  that  a  free  employment  bureau  would  be  an 
advantage  to  business  men. 

9.4  per  cent  think  that  it  would  not  be  of  advantage  to  their 
business. 

6.2  per  cent  say  they  don't  know  or  have  no  opinion. 

An  employment  bureau  of  the  kind  you  suggest  would  be  very  helpful  to 
employers,  and  with  the  pupils'  daily  records  to  refer  to  it  should  be  possible 
for  employers  to  get  from  such  a  bureau  young  men  who  had  proved  their 
efficiency,  not  by  having  earned  a  diploma,  but  by  having  earned  high  marks 
daily  for  promptness,  courtesy,  diligent  attention  to  studies,  earnestness  of 
purpose,  as  well  as  the  passing  of  an  examination. 

Yes.  The  pupils  attaining  the  required  degree  of  efficiency  could  be  bul- 
letined at  the  state  employment  bureaus,  as  well  as  at  the  various  commercial 
and  industrial  clubs,  so  that  any  of  the  interested  members  could  make  their 
selections  from  these  lists.  Those  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  proposi- 
tion could  very  readily  tell  within  a  short  time  whether  the  experience  was 
an  advantage  or  otherwise. 

Many  business  men  with  whom  the  writer  conversed  said  that 
they  would  be  glad  to  utilize  a  number  of  efficient  pupils  during  the 
summer  vacation,  while  their  regular  employees  were  off  on  vaca- 
tions, but  that  they  had  no  means  of  finding  such  persons  directly, 
or  determining  their  standing  and  efficiency.  The  possibilities  of 
using  the  suggestions  herein  set  forth  as  a  school  incentive  are 
worthy  of  careful  consideration. 

/.  It  is  manifest,  that  to  fulfill  their  best  purposes,  the  commer- 
cial departments  of  the  high  schools  of  Chicago  should  keep  in  con- 
stant touch  with  the  business  zuorld  and  advance  with  the  evolution 
of  mercantile  development.  What  methods  can  you  suggest  of  pro- 
moting such  a  relation  between  them  and  the  business  interests  of 
the  city? 


ATTITUDE  OF  BUSINESS  MEN  265 

Have  practical  commercial  men  in  the  directorate  and  as  teachers  —  their 
tenure  of  office  dependent  on  results. 

Have  the  pupils,  under  guidance  of  teachers,  visit  large  offices  for  study 
of  special  systems  —  such  visits  being  previously  arranged  for. 

A  central  high  school  of  commerce  devoted  to  the  work  and  enjoying  the 
counsel  and  attention  of  an  advisory  board  of  business  men. 

Arrange  to  have  a  study  made  once  each  year  by  heads  of  departments 
in  the  commercial  schools,  of  business  methods  of  representative  business 
houses  in  Chicago. 

A  committee  should  be  appointed  by  the  educators  of  Chicago  to  meet 
with  a  committee  of  business  men  from  the  various  branches  of  trade.  This 
combined  committee  should  investigate  the  needs  and  suggest  a  high-school 
course  which  will  prepare  young  men  and  women  to  meet  the  demands  of  the 
commercial  world. 

It  would  seem  to  me  that  it  might  be  possible  to  arrange  such  connection 
with  the  best  high-school  students  in  commercial  courses  on  the  one  hand, 
and  commercial  houses  in  the  city  on  the  other,  as  is  now  in  existence 
between  certain  students  in  the  Lewis  Institute  with  manufacturing  estab- 
lishments. These  students  spend  part  of  their  time  in  the  school  classes  and 
part  of  their  time  in  active  work  in  the  factories.  In  this  way  theory  and 
practice  go  hand  in  hand,  as  they  should. 

Have  teachers  acquainted  with  the  practical  needs  of  business  institu- 
tions ;  those  with  actual  business  experience  which  has  reduced  theories  to 
actual  working  plans. 

Lectures  from  practical  business  men  would  help,  and  also  if  large  com- 
mercial houses  could  be  induced  to  employ  help  from  the  schools  for  short 
periods  of  time  during  the  rush  season,  allowing  the  pupil  to  return  to  the 
school  when  the  rush  is  over.  This  would  give  practical  experience  and 
would  enable  the  pupil  to  also  obtain  a  little  idea  of  what  course  should  be 
followed  in  study. 

Have  representatives  of  high  schools  learn  from  employers  of  pupils 
reasons  in  each  case  for  pupils  failing  to  "  make  good."  Then  generalize 
results  and  correct  methods  in  use. 

If  the  commercial  departments  of  the  high  schools  of  Chicago  are  to  be 
kept  in  constant  touch  with  the  business  world  in  order  to  advance  with  the 
evolution  of  mercantile  development,  one  of  two  things  would  seem  to  be 
necessary:  (1)  Either  the  teachers  should  themselves  take  a  post-graduate 
course,  or  make  some  arrangement  whereby  they  may  familiarize  themselves 
with  actual  business  conditions  in  some  of  our  large  business  institutions ; 
or  (2)  they  should  be  replaced  by  people  who  have  had  such  business  expe- 
rience and  who  are  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  process  of  evolving  compe- 
tent clerical  help  from  raw  material.  If  the  teachers  in  the  commercial 
departments  could  attend  a  series  of  lectures,  to  be  given  by  prominent  busi- 
ness men  and  experts  in  various  commercial  lines,  I  believe  such  a  course 
of  lectures  would  be  of  inestimable  benefit  in  directing  the  attention  of  these 
teachers  to  the  really  important  and  vital  qualifications  that  should  receive 
particular  emphasis  in  any  course  of  commercial  instruction. 


266  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER   XII 

VIEWS  OF  TEACHERS  OF  COMMERCIAL  SUBJECTS 
IN  CHICAGO  HIGH  SCHOOLS 


[In  1910  two-year  vocational  courses  in  commercial  subjects  were 
introduced  into  the  Chicago  high  schools,  giving  more  time  to  prac- 
tice in  accounting  and  stenography.  In  most  of  the  schools  an  ade- 
quate number  of  machines  has  been  provided,  and  in  so  far  the 
criticisms  made  in  this  and  preceding  chapters  have  been  already 
met.    This  report  was  made  prior  to  this  period.] 

Teachers  of  commercial  subjects  in  the  public  high  school  com- 
plain that  the  work  receives  little  or  no  encouragement  from  school 
officers,  that  it  is  lacking  in  equipment,  in  time  (especially  for  prac- 
tice work),  and  in  an  atmosphere  of  practical  business.  Moreover, 
pupils  who  elect  the  commercial  subjects  are  handicapped  by  the 
excessive  amount  of  academic  work  required  because  courses 
are  planned  to  meet  college-entrance  requirements. 

Some  statements  made  by  teachers  relative  to  the  above  condi- 
tions are  here  given. 

Commercial  education  in  this  high  school,  as  in  the  other  high  schools 
of  Chicago,  is  in  a  very  bad  way.  None  of  the  classes  provided  for  by  the 
Board  of  Education  has  ever  been  organized  except  for  the  first  year  in 
bookkeeping  and  one  year  in  stenography  and  typewriting.  The  request  for 
classes  in  advanced  bookkeeping  and  commercial  law  has  always  been  denied. 
The  number  of  pupils  desiring  advanced  bookkeeping  is  large.  We  have 
absolutely  no  equipment  except  a  limited  number  of  typewriters.  Since  no 
instructor  is  available  to  supervise  the  work  in  the  typewriting  room,  the 
result  is  necessarily  unsatisfactory.  Until  commercial  work  receives  approxi- 
mately the  same  consideration  as  other  subjects,  it  is  idle  to  discuss  courses. 

The  trouble  with  the  high  schools,  with  reference  to  commercial  studies, 
is  that  the  teachers  have  not  the  responsibility  for  their  success.  Those 
pupils  who  have  most  of  their  work  in  this  line  are  overworked,  the  others 
have  their  attention  and  interests  divided.  I  think  commercial  work  in  this 
city  will  be  most  speedily  advanced  by  a  policy  toward  it  similar  to  the  policy- 
adopted  toward  manual  training.  We  should  have  two  or  three  commercial 
high  schools  distributed  over  the  city. 

The  enrolment  in  one  high  school  shows  a  large  decrease  in  the 
number  of  pupils  taking  commercial  branches.     In  September,  1908, 


VIEWS  OF  TEACHERS  267 

there  were  enrolled  in  the  commercial  courses  in  this  high  school 
310  pupils.  In  September,  1909,  there  were  enrolled  252  pupils  in 
the  commercial  courses.  The  reasons  for  this  are  given  by  one  of 
the  teachers  in  charge. 

The  drop  in  enrolment  in  our  bookkeeping  from  1908-9  to  1909-10  may  be 
explained  by  the  fact  that  in  June,  1909,  physiology  was  deducted  from  the 
time  and  credit  allowed  for  first-year  bookkeeping.  It  was  thought  to  be 
more  convenient  to  subtract  this  time  from  bookkeeping  (the  commercial 
subject)  than  from  any  other  subject.  The  drop  in  stenography  for  the  same 
period  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  sewing  was  offered  to  second-year 
pupils  in  September,  1909,  as  an  elective  alternating  with  stenography,  and 
no  pupil  was  allowed  to  elect  both. 

We  have  little  or  no  equipment ;  lack  suitable  text-books ;  should  be 
freed  from  the  domination  of  outside  (publishing)  influence;  and  in  order 
to  invite  hearty,  enthusiastic,  concerted  effort,  teachers  should  have  a  fair 
hearing  upon  matters  devolving  upon  them  to  put  into  efficient  operation. 
Our  subjects  have  been  looked  upon  as  intruders  within  the  classic  precincts 
and  have  been  given  cold  reception.  We  hail  this  movement  upon  the  part 
of  the  business  community  as  the  dawning  of  a  new  era  and  the  promise  of 
better  things  in  the  future. 

Our  second-year  bookkeeping  list  of  pupils  would  doubtless  have  been 
20  to  25  per  cent  larger  but  for  difficulty  arising  from  conflict  of  subjects 
on  program  schedules.  This  doubtless  to  some  extent  has  affected  the  second- 
year  stenography.  Two  years  ago  we  had  40-odd  applicants  wanting  second- 
year  bookkeeping,  but  who  could  not  be  provided  for  because  no  text  had 
then  been  authorized. 

The  departmental  system  (now  but  a  name)  would  do  much  to  insure 
thorough  work.  There  are  no  heads  of  departments  in  our  high  schools. 
Such  heads  of  departments  would  take  pride  in  their  own  department  and 
assist  materially  in  securing  efficient  assistants  fitted  for  such  work.  The 
work  would  also  be  better  correlated. 

A  committee  such  as  yours,  or  a  committee  consisting  of  men  from  busi- 
ness associations  and  men  from  educational  associations,  could  propose  ques- 
tions of  policy  which  would  arouse  an  interest  and  impulse  that  would  solve 
many  difficulties. 

Penmanship  is  taught  incidentally,  by  taking  ten  minutes  daily  from  the 
bookkeeping  period,  and  only  by  those  teachers  who  wish  to  teach  it. 

There  ought  to  be  a  separate  period  given  daily  to  penmanship,  a  period 
of  fifty  minutes  per  day  devoted  to  penmanship  alone.  The  course  of  study 
does  not  at  present  provide  for  the  giving  of  credit  for  work  in  penmanship. 
This  should  be  provided  for. 

What  Chicago  needs  is  a  central  commercial  high  school  devoted  chiefly 
to  commercial  education.  Such  an  institution  could  give  both  the  briefest 
and  the  most  complete  courses  in  the  curriculum.  Such  an  institution  cen- 
trally located  would  so  set  the  standards  for  commercial  education  that  the 
other  high  schools  of  the  city  would  be  educated  as  to  what  is  possible  for 


268  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

the  city,  and  would  be  persuaded  to  include  a  larger  portion  of  purely  business 
education  in  their  course  of  stud}-. 

The  attitude  of  some  principals  and  of  some  teachers  of  other  subjects 
is  that  of  protest  or  of  tolerance.  They  insist  that  no  commercial  subject 
shall  encroach  in  any  way  upon  the  time  allotted  to  other  subjects,  or  the 
interest  of  other  subjects.  Some  even  maintain  that  pupils  in  commercial 
subjects  neglect  other  subjects,  or  because  pupils  oftener  become  discouraged 
in  other  subjects  that  the  least  capable  pupils  elect  commercial  subjects. 

When  a  pupil  who  desires  to  learn  typewriting  may  have  but  two  practice 
periods  (of  forty  minutes  each)  per  week,  how  soon  could  one  expect 
him  to  become  an  efficient  operator?  Yet  his  acquaintance  with  the  machine, 
even  under  these  unfavorable  circumstances,  the  habits  of  close  attention 
and  concentration  his  practice  inculcates,  the  improvement  it  develops  in  his 
formal  English  (spelling  and  punctuation  especially)  are  all  of  real  value  to 
him. 

Observation  of  the  commercial  work  in  the  various  high  schools 
of  the  city  confirms  the  truth  of  the  above  statements.  Although 
5,236  children  elected  commercial  subjects  in  1909-10  —  31.5  per 
cent  of  the  total  enrolment  of  16,616  —  the  work  does  not  receive  the 
attention  required  by  the  interests  of  the  pupils  and  the  needs  of  the 
business  community.  Excellent  equipment  is  provided  for  manual 
training  and  the  science  departments,  but  little  for  commercial  sub- 
jects. Desks  suitable  for  bookkeeping  are  found  in  only  two  or  three 
schools.  Practically  all  of  the  high  schools  do  not  have  a  sufficient 
number  of  typewriters,  and  some  of  these  machines  are  in  poor  con- 
dition and  are  placed  on  tables  not  suited  to  the  work  of  pupils. 


REASONS  FOR  LEAVING  SCHOOL  269 


CHAPTER   XIII 

REASONS  GIVEN   BY  PUPILS   FOR  LEAVING  SCHOOL 


Of  the  6,536  pupils  who  entered  the  Chicago  high  schools  in 
September,  1905,  only  1,470  were  graduated  four  years  later.  This 
is  a  loss  of  77.5  per  cent  for  the  four  years. 

Various  reasons  may  be  assigned  for  such  a  large  percentage  of 
loss.  Some  interesting  information  on  this  question  was  secured, 
from  491  themes  written  by  fourth-year  pupils  in  ten  high  schools  of 
the  city,  on  the  subject,  "  Why  Do  Pupils  Leave  the  High  School?  " 
Some  of  the  reasons  given  in  these  themes  are  presented  below. 

The  number  of  pupils  who  give  as  a  reason  "  To  go  to  business 
college  "  is  341,  or  69.5  per  cent.  Some  quotations  on  this  point 
from  the  themes  are  as  follows  : 

I  think  that  the  reason  people  drop  out  of  high  school  is  that  the  courses 
given  do  not  thoroughly  prepare  them  for  the  business  life  which  most  of 
them  enter  when  they  leave  school.  They  feel  that  they  would  be  better 
employing  their  time  if  they  took  a  course  at  some  business  school.  At  the 
end  of  our  high-school  course  can  we  do  any  one  thing  well?  I  can  not. 
We  are  taught  a  little  of  everything,  but  not  enough  of  any  one  thing  to  do 
us  any  good,  while  upon  leaving  a  business  school  we  would  feel  that  we 
had  not  wasted  our  time  and  our  money. 

Then,  again,  pupils  wish  to  obtain  a  business  education,  which  is  not 
treated  thoroughly  enough  in  the  high  schools.  Therefore  they  quit  to  go 
to  business  college. 

Third,  the  inability  to  adapt  the  course  to  their  after  life.  The  question 
of  whether  they  need  just  the  kind  of  education  which  they  are  receiving 
in  the  high  schools  or  whether  a  course  of  study  more  adapted  to  their 
chosen  vocation  would  not  serve  them  a  better  purpose  and  be  more  lastingly 
beneficial  to  them  in  their  struggle  for  a  living,  presents  itself.  The  businc-s 
college  seems  to  offer  a  solution,  therefore  many  students  leave  yearly  for 
these  institutions. 

After  the  pupils  have  had  some  work  in  stenography  in  the  high  school 
they  leave  usually  after  the  third  year,  to  go  to  business  college,  so  as  to 
receive  a  good  finish  to  the  work  which  they  expect  to  do  in  the  business 
world. 

Probably  one  of  the  most  obvious  reasons  why  many  students  leave  high 
school  before  graduation  is  that  those  who  enter  for  a  commercial  course 
find  that  the  high-school  course  is  inadequate  to  serve  them.  The  commercial 
course  in  the  high  school  does  not  give  the  student  enough  practice,  so  that 


270  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

he  can  go  out  into  the  world  and  obtain  a  position.  The  business  college 
furnishes  a  fuller  course,  and  the  student  feels  he  is  wasting  his  time  in  the 
high  school  when  he  can  do  a  greater  amount  of  work  in  less  time  some- 
where else. 

Others  who  are  too  young  to  go  to  business  college  or  to  work  are  sent 
for  a  year  or  two  to  high  school,  where  they  take  up  as  much  of  a  commer- 
cial course  as  they  can,  and  then  leave  for  a  more  thorough  business  course. 

I  think  that  if  a  more  extensive  business  course  was  undertaken  in  high 
school  there  would  be  fewer  leave-takings. 

Of  the  many  reasons  for  which  pupils  leave  high  school,  the  principal 
one  is  to  obtain  a  business  education  preparatory  to  entering  the  commercial 
world.  Since  very  few  commercial  studies  are  taught  in  the  preparatory 
schools,  those  desiring  to  pursue  a  business  life  deem  it  a  waste  of  time  to 
spend  four  years  in  the  high  school  when  they  can  enter  a  business  or  com- 
mercial college  and  take  those  studies  relative  to  their  future  work. 

I  know  one  boy  who  stopped  high  school  because  the  course  did  not  have 
enough  studies  that  would  be  helpful  to  him  as  a  business  man.  .  .  .  He 
dropped  out  and  immediately  started  to  a  business  school,  where  the  course 
pertained  more  to  business.  His  parents  are  rather  well-to-do  and  the  young 
man  could  go  to  any  school  he  wanted  to.  For  instance,  if  he  preferred  to 
enter  the  university  after  high  school  and  then  enter  a  business  college,  he 
could  do  so.  To  sum  up,  I  think  that  there  should  be  more  practical  knowl- 
edge, that  is,  knowledge  that  could  be  helpful  to  the  business  man;  and  then 
the  number  of  "  quitters  "  would  decrease. 

Some  pupils  come  to  high  school  so  that  they  may  obtain  better  salaries 
when  through.  After  having  spent  a  year  or  two  they  find  that  they  are  not 
being  fitted  for  a  definite  work,  and  leave  to  seek  employment  or  enter  a 
business  college.  The  majority  of  pupils  go  to  business  college  to  learn 
commercial  studies  because  it  covers  too  long  a  space  of  time  to  study  it  in 
high  school. 

A I  any  students  find,  during  the  first  or  second  year  of  the  course, 
that  the  studies  they  are  pursuing  do  not  prepare  them  to  work  or 
to  work  efficiently.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  296,  or  60.3  per 
cent,  give  as  a  reason  why  pupils  drop  out,  that  they  see  no  con- 
nection between  their  high-school  work  and  their  future  vocation. 
We  quote  here  a  number  of  statements  bearing  on  this  point : 

Some  pupils,  after  receiving  a  year  or  two  of  the  general  education 
afforded  by  the  high  school,  leave  them  to  prepare  for  some  specific  branch 
of  work,  for.  really,  the  high  schools  do  not  fit  the  pupils  for  any  position. 
These  people  want  knowledge  that  they  can  turn  into  dollars  and  cents. 

One  of  the  reasons  why  some  pupils  do  not  finish  the  high-school  courses 
is  because  they  realize  that  the  curriculum  is  inefficient.  Since  high-school 
pupils  may  be  divided  into  two  classes,  those  who  intend  to  further  their 
education  by  entering  college  and  those  who  intend  to  seek  employment  after 
graduation,  the  curriculum  should  therefore  provide  for  two  separate  courses. 


REASONS  FOR  LEAVING  SCHOOL  271 

Most  high  schools,  however,  do  provide  for  a  course  which  is  an  excellent 
preparation  for  college,  but  the  course  for  those  who  are  preparing  for  the 
business  world  is  deficient. 

The  courses  given  at  present  are  inadequate  for  a  commercial  life.  At 
the  end  of  a  year  a  student  taking  the  commercial  course  has  obtained  only 
a  smattering  of  knowledge  —  many  unrelated  facts  which  are  of  no  real  value 
to  him.  He  then  leaves  school  feeling  that  he  can  gain  more  by  practical 
experience. 

When  a  high  school  has  several  different  set  courses,  the  pupil  is  forced 
to  decide  in  the  beginning  which  course  he  wishes  to  take  up.  The  fact  that 
he  knows  that  he  will  be  fitted  for  a  certain  calling  when  the  course  is  fin- 
nished  furnishes  an  incentive  to  him  to  keep  up.  in  his  work. 

It  has  been  shown  that  a  greater  per  cent  of  manual-training  pupils  grad- 
uate than  of  those  who  attend  any  other  high  school.  A  very  probable  reason 
is  that  a  certain  course  is  laid  out  in  the  former  school  which  has  some  defi- 
nite bearing  on  the  pupil's  future  work.  In  a  carefully  arranged  course  the 
pupil  makes  no  mistake  in  choosing  his  subjects,  and  is  encouraged  by  the 
fact  that  he  expects  to  be  able  to  do  something  when  he  is  through. 

The  boys  leave  the  high  schools  and  enter  the  technical  institutes,  the 
manual-training  schools  or  the  business  college.  The  girls  seek  the  business 
colleges,  art  schools  and  schools  of  music.  By  beginning  these  studies,  which 
will  enable  them  to  earn  money  during  the  time  that  they  would  have  put 
in  the  high  schools,  the  boys  and  girls  of  eighteen  or  nineteen  are  able  to 
start  in  earning  their  living  much  sooner  than  if  they  were  graduated  from 
a  public  high  school  and  after  that  had  to  prepare  themselves  for  wage- 
earning.  This,  then,  is  the  reason  why  students  leave  high  school  in  the 
middle  of  the  course.  The  course  is  not  practical  or  of  very  much  use  except 
to  those  who  are  going  on  into  colleges  and  higher  schools.  There  is  very 
little  in  the  ordinary  high-school  course  which  is  directly  beneficial  to  one 
preparing  to  enter  the  business  world.  That  is  why  classes  which  as  freshmen 
number  from  800  to  1,000  dwindle,  till  at  graduation  they  barely  touch  the 
100  mark. 

What  of  the  pupil  who  knows  that  at  any  time  he  may  have  to  relinquish 
school  for  a  position  and,  considering  his  assets,  realizes  that  the  algebra, 
science,  history  and  possibly  Latin  that  he  has  taken  as  requirements  for 
his  diploma  will,  if  he  drops  school  at  the  end  of  two  years,  be  for  all  prac- 
tical purposes  useless  in  office  or  factory  work  ? 

To  avoid  this  reason  for  dropping  out,  I  would  suggest  that  courses  of 
study  which  qualify  for  some  particular  goal  be  mapped  out  by  those  compe- 
tent to  judge  of  what  the  goal  requires,  and  that,  omitting  everything  super- 
fluous, that  course,  chosen  by  the  pupil  at  entrance,  be  adhered  to  by  com- 
pulsion throughout.  Besides,  a  bureau  of  information  ought  to  be  established 
at  the  schools,  of  which  all  pupils  are  aware,  which  would  aim  to  advise  and 
inform  students  on  any  points  in  connection  with  the  curriculum  and  its 
relation  to  a  vocation. 


272  REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


PART  IV 

EDUCATIONAL  TESTS  GIVEN  TO  BOYS  WHO 
HAD  LEFT  SCHOOL  FOR  WORK 


By 

IRWIN   M.  RISTINE 

Special  Investigator  for  the  Sub-committee 


CHAPTER  XIV 

PURPOSE,  METHODS  AND  GENERAL  RESULTS 


The  object  of  this  investigation  is  to  determine  by  specific  tests 
the  educational  status  of  boys  who  leave  school  to  go  to  work  as 
soon  as  the  law  permits,  regardless  of  their  advancement  in  the 
grades.1  Information  was  also  gathered  as  to  the  boys'  reasons  for 
leaving  school,  the  reasons  for  taking  up  the  kind  of  work  they  were 
doing,  the  kinds  of  work  they  would  like  to  follow  for  a  life  occu- 
pation, and  the  state  of  their  intelligence  on  general  topics. 

The  tests  used 

The  character  of  the  tests,  and  the  best  method  of  securing  the 
desired  information,  were  both  difficult  to  determine.  Several 
psychological  tests  were  proposed,  which  it  was  hoped  would  be 
successful  in  revealing  accuracy  and  quickness.  It  was  soon  realized, 
however,  that  the  varying  conditions  under  which  these  examinations 
would  have  to  be  made  would  vitiate  the  results  along  that  line. 
Hence  the  psychological  tests  were  abandoned.  In  the  end  the  fol- 
lowing plan  was  pursued : 

(1)  A  question  blank  not  dissimilar  to  those  used  by  many 
employment  offices  was  prepared. 

(2)  A  minimum  sixth-grade  arithmetic  test  with  special  prac- 
tical features  was  used. 

(3)  An  English  test  was  set  in  the  form  of  a  questionnaire, 
answers  to  which  revealed  not  only  the  state  of  the  boy's  knowledge 
of  the  use  of  the  language,  but  also  to  some  extent  his  ambition  and 

1  Statistics  showing  the  number  of  children  who  leave  school  before  graduation,  and 
the  grade  reached  by  these  children,  are  given  in  Chapter  II. 


PURPOSE,  METHODS  AND  GENERAL  RESULTS  273 

his  ethical  conceptions.    These  papers  were  also  graded  for  spelling 
and  handwriting. 

(4)  Whenever  time  permitted  an  oral  quiz  was  conducted,  each 
youth  being  questioned  for  ten  minutes  in  order  to  reveal  his  knowl- 
edge of  simple  matters  of  United  States  History  and  of  Civil  Gov- 
ernment. 

The  method  of  conducting  the  tests 

A  definite  period  of  time  was  allowed  for  each  part  of  the  exam- 
ination. The  whole  time  was  a  little  less  than  two  hours,  and  in  a 
few  cases  where  the  employer  furnished  the  information,  rather  than 
allow  the  boys  to  fill  out  our  question  blank,  the  time  was  still  fur- 
ther cut  down. 

A  regular  order  was  followed  in  conducting  this  inquiry.  The 
question  blank  was  filled  out  first,  the  arithmetic  was  given  next, 
then  the  English  was  given.  This  is  mentioned  because  later  it  will 
be  seen  that  a  considerably  larger  number  of  boys  were  given  the 
arithmetic  than  the  English.  This  merely  means  that,  in  some 
instances,  the  time  at  our  disposal  was  too  short  to  examine  the  boys 
in  more  than  one  subject. 

The  difficulty  of  securing  boys 

So  far  as  we  knew,  no  such  experiment  as  this  had  ever  been 
undertaken  and  some  method  of  securing  the  boys,  whom  we  desired 
should  take  the  tests,  had  to  be  devised.    In  this,  much  time  was  lost. 

Boys'  Clubs  and  Social  Settlements,  so  far  as  we  could  learn  of 
them,  were  investigated.  But  we  found,  for  the  most  part,  that  the 
boys  who  were  sufficiently  well  under  control  of  the  directors  of 
these  organizations  so  that  they  could  be  prevailed  upon  to  do  as 
they  were  asked  in  a  matter  of  this  sort,  were  usually  under  fourteen 
years  of  age  and  still  in  school.  The  older  boys  were  suspicious  of 
anything  that  smacked  of  former  schooldays,  and  there  was  no  way 
to  coerce  them. 

The  next  move  was  to  go  directly  to  employers  of  boys  of  the 
type  we  wanted  and  to  ask  their  cooperation.  There  was  a  variety 
of  reasons  why  most  of  them  did  not  care  to  have  anything  to  do 
with  the  undertaking.  Some  frankly  said  they  were  not  interested. 
Others  said  they  could  not  afford  to  have  the  work  of  their  boys 
interfered  with  long  enough  for  the  tests  to  be  given.  Other  objec- 
tions were  made,  no  doubt  sincere,  but  often  trivial. 
19 


274  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

On  four  separate  occasions  boys  were  offered  pay  slightly  in 
advance  of  the  amount  received  for  an  equal  expenditure  of  time  in 
their  regular  employment  to  take  the  tests  out  of  work  hours.  This 
plan  was  a  complete  failure. 

One  would  think  that  the  offer  of  extra  pay,  which  would  not 
have  to  be  accounted  for  at  home  along  with  the  rest  of  the  weekly 
wage,  for  an  hour  or  two  of  mental  labor  would  cause  the  boys  to 
yield  to  the  wishes  of  the  investigator.  The  most  discouraging  proof 
that  this  was  not  the  case  was  furnished  at  one  of  the  larger  estab- 
lishments, when  a  hundred  boys  on  Friday,  tempted  by  the  offer  of 
25  cents  an  hour,  which  would  assure  them  a  chance  to  see  the  Sun- 
day baseball  game,  promised  to  stay  the  following  noon  to  take  the 
tests  before  leaving  for  their  regular  Saturday  afternoon  holiday. 
The  next  day,  however,  on  the  blowing  of  the  twelve  o'clock  whistle. 
all  departed  from  the  building  in  great  haste. 

Whenever  the  employer  made  the  matter  optional  with  the  boys, 
the  low-grade  youth,  the  investigation  of  whose  intellectual  life  was 
our  distinct  purpose,  refused  to  take  the  tests. 

Our  task  was  made  more  difficult  by  reason  of  the  fact  that,  while 
the  labor  laws  require  the  State  Factory  Inspector  to  keep  a  record 
of  those  concerns  that  employ  young  people  from  fourteen  to  sixteen 
years  of  age,  those  above  sixteen  are  classed  as  adults.  It  was,  there- 
fore, necessary  to  discover  by  personal  investigation  where  boys 
above  sixteen  were  to  be  found.  Boys  above  sixteen  were  those  in 
whom  we  were  especially  interested,  as  they  had  usually  been  out  of 
school  for  some  time. 

The  successful  lines  of  approach 

The  boys  tested  were  obtained  as  follows : 

(1)  By  the  cooperation  of  sympathetic  employers  willing  to 
give  the  time  of  the  boys  and  to  exercise  a  measure  of  authority  to 
get  them  to  submit  to  the  tests. 

(2)  By  the  courtesy  of  Superintendent  Young  we  were  allowed 
to  give  the  tests  in  the  sixth,  seventh  and  eighth  grades  in  the  night 
schools. 

(3)  Superintendent  Young  also  gave  similar  permission,  of 
which  we  availed  ourselves,  in  regard  to  the  Apprentice  Schools, 
which  were  in  session  at  this  time. 

A  word  of  explanation  is  here  given.  The  public  night  schools 
are  conducted   for  the  benefit  of  those  people  who  can  not  avail 


PURPOSE,  METHODS  AND  GENERAL  RESULTS  275 

themselves  of  the  advantages  of  the  day  schools.  A  large  number 
of  foreigners  attend  to  be  taught  the  English  language.  Then,  for 
the  benefit  of  those  who  had  to  drop  out  of  the  grades  of  the  day 
school  in  order  to  go  to  work,  a  regular  grade  system  is  conducted 
leading  to  common-school  graduation.  It  was  with  the  sixth,  seventh 
and  eighth  grades  of  the  latter  class  that  we  dealt.  These  grades 
were  made  up  chiefly  of  boys  between  the  ages  of  fourteen  and 
twenty.  It  was  an  easy  matter  to  eliminate  the  papers  of  the  girls 
and  women  and  the  few  older  men  before  our  results  were  made  up. 

The  Apprentice  Schools  run  three  months  in  the  year  for  the 
benefit  of  the  apprentices  of  the  Carpenters'  Union  of  the  city. 

It  is,  therefore,  seen  that  we  found  three  types  of  boys,  which 
groups  are  discriminated  throughout  our  report :  those  in  the  night 
schools,  those  in  the  Apprentice  Schools,  and  those  out  of  school. 

Method  of  grading 

As  remarked  above,  we  did  not  deal  with  grades  below  the  sixth 
in  the  night  school,  the  reason  being  that  these  lower  grades  were 
made  up  almost  entirely  of  people  who  had  never  had  the  oppor- 
tunity to  attend  the  day  schools  in  this  country,  and  the  average  age 
was  too  high  for  our  purpose.  In  the  sixth-grade  night  school  we 
found  boys  who  had  left  the  fourth,  fifth  and  sixth  grades  of  the 
day  school  on  having  reached  fourteen  years  of  age.  Assuming  that 
a  child  should  reach  the  eighth  grade  by  the  time  that  he  is  fourteen, 
these  boys  were  all  retarded  when  they  left  the  day  school,  some 
more  than  others.  These  youths,  who  enter  the  sixth-grade  night 
school  in  this  retarded  condition,  are,  if  necessary,  kept  in  this  grade 
until  they  come  up  to  standard.  While  the  grading  is  sufficiently 
flexible  to  allow  a  boy  who  had  formerly  been  only  in  the  fourth- 
grade  day  school  to  attend  the  sixth-grade  night  school,  he  will  not 
be  passed  on  to  the  seventh-grade  night  school  as  soon  as  the  boy 
who  was  in  the  fifth  grade  when  he  left  the  day  school. 

In  the  seventh  and  eighth  grades  the  pupils  for  the  most  part 
were  less  retarded  on  leaving  the  day  school ;  their  average  age  is 
slightly  less  than  the  average  age  of  the  sixth  grade,  and  the  grading 
is  a  little  closer  in  the  seventh  and  eighth. 

The  young  people,  therefore,  who  are  in  the  night  schools  have 
just  the  advantage  implied  in  that  fact,  over  those  who  have  left 
the  public  schools  altogether  at  a  corresponding  grade. 

Undoubtedly,  for  those  who  have  attended  the  night  schools  dili- 


276  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

gently  for  a  considerable  length  of  time,  this  advantage  is  very 
great.  But  in  the  making  up  of  these  tables  the  advantage  over  the 
boys  out  of  school  is  offset  by  the  facts : 

(a)  That  many  of  those  whom  we  tested  had  just  entered 
the  night  schools. 

(b)  That  many  are  very  irregular  in  attendance. 

(c)  Some  attend  merely  to  have  a  place  to  spend  their  eve- 
nings, taking  very  little  interest  in  their  work. 

(d)  The  night  schools  run  for  five  months  in  the  year  and, 
theoretically,  for  two  hours  an  evening.  Practically  owing  to 
late  arrivals,  teachers  are  often  unable  to  hold  classes  more  than 
one  hour  and  a  half. 

(e)  A  room  in  the  night  schools  that  fails  to  maintain  an 
attendance  of  twenty  pupils  is  closed.  Therefore,  in  order  to 
keep  the  necessary  number,  a  pupil  may  be  classified  above  his 
grade.  Say  a  seventh-grader  may  be  called  an  eighth-grader. 
In  our  tables,  then,  he  is  an  eighth  grader,  whereas,  had  we  met 
the  same  boy  out  of  school  his  name  would  have  gone  down  on 
the  tables  as  a  seventh-grader.  The  number  of  such  cases,  how- 
ever, is  not  large. 

The  boys  in  the  Apprentice  Schools,  both  by  the  school  author- 
ities and  in  our  tables,  are  classified  according  to  the  grades  they 
held  on  leaving  the  public  day  schools.  Whatever  training  they  had 
received  in  the  Apprentice  Schools  was,  as  regards  its  effect  on  their 
standing  in  our  tables,  clear  gain.  However,  this  was  less  than 
might  be  supposed,  for  the  following  reasons : 

(a)  The  schools  are  conducted  only  three  months  in  the 
year. 

(b)  The  tests  were  made  just  after  the  schools  had  com- 
menced, so  that  the  boys  were  not  fresh  in  the  work. 

(c)  Irregularity  of  attendance  is  even  more  pronounced 
here  than  in  the  night  schools. 

(d)  The  fact  that  the  boys  had  been  out  of  touch  with 
schoolwork  for  some  time  before  they  were  apprenticed  had 
shifted  the  center  of  attention  from  schoolwork  and  rendered 
them  careless  and  even  resentful  of  it. 

(e)  The  Apprentice  Schools  run  three  months  in  the  winter 
each  year  for  four  years.  Hence  some  of  the  boys  had  been  in 
the  school  for  three  full  winters,  some  for  two,  some  for  one, 


PURPOSE,  METHODS  AND  GENERAL  RESULTS  277 

and  some  for  only  a  few  weeks.  Yet  their  grading  as  sixth, 
seventh  and  eighth  grades  is  unaffected  by  this  varying  duration 
of  time  in  the  Apprentice  Schools. 

The  boys  out  of  school  were  classified  according  to  the  grade 
held  when  they  left  school. 

The  average  age  of  the  different  groups : 
I     (night  schools)  seventeen  years. 
II     (Apprentice  Schools)  nineteen  years. 
Ill     (boys  out  of  school)  seventeen  years. 
In  groups  I  and  III  the  average  age  of  the  sixth  grade  was  slightly 
greater  than  the  average  of  either  the  seventh  or  eighth.    This  was 
not  noted  in  group  II. 

Summary  of  results 

Two  main  points  stood  out  clearly  in  the  arithmetic  test : 

First. —  The  boys  of  the  eighth  grade  were  manifestly  superior 
to  those  of  the  seventh,  as  were  the  seventh  superior  to  the  sixth, 
in  a  test  which  should  have  been  worked  by  all. 

Second. —  The  boys  who  were  in  what  might  be  termed  a  con- 
tinuation school  were  ahead  of  the  boys  of  the  corresponding  grades 
who  were  out  of  school. 

The  same  conclusions  held,  in  general,  for  the  other  tests. 

The  occupation  tables  reveal  that  there  is  a  great  demand  on 
the  part  of  a  large  class  of  our  population  for  trade,  or  commercial 
training,  which  is  not  offered  in  the  schools  of  the  city.  The  205 
boys  in  Group  I  (boys  out  of  school)  were  asked  if  they  could  have 
stayed  in  school  if  they  had  cared  to  do  so.  More  than  90  per  cent 
said  they  had  not  left  school  because  of  the  necessity  of  going  to 
work,  but  that  they  were  tired  of  school.  When  asked  if  they  would 
have  stayed  in  school,  if  they  could  have  been  getting  trade  training, 
fully  75  per  cent  said  "  yes." 

As  a  considerable  number  of  the  boys  were  not  willing  to  reveal 
the  salary  they  were  getting,  no  averages  are  published  as  to  the 
salaries  of  these  particular  boys,  but  the  writer  interviewed  ten 
employment  managers  of  the  larger  establishments  in  the  city,  and 
an  average  of  their  figures  would  place  the  wage  of  boys  between 
fourteen  and  sixteen  at  $4.25.  Inasmuch  as  most  of  these  boys  had 
carfare  to  pay,  and  bought  their  noon  lunch,  the  returns  to  the  boys' 
families  would  hardly  compensate  for  the  loss  of  schooling  during 
those  years,  in  the  majority  of  the  cases. 


278  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC 


The  first  part  of  the  test  in  arithmetic  is  a  set  of  four  problems, 
which  we  will  term  the  "  fundamentals,"  taken  from  the  list  used 
by  J.  N.  Rice  in  his  extensive  tests  of  school  children,  the  results  of 
which  were  published  in  the  Forum,  Volume  34.  The  first  problem 
is  of  fourth-grade  difficulty,  the  second  and  third  should  be  worked 
in  the  fifth  grade,  the  fourth  because  of  the  decimal  would  be  classi- 
fied as  a  sixth-grade  problem.  The  last  part  of  the  arithmetic  test 
is  a  group  of  four  problems  which  might  be  called  an  exercise  in 
objectified  fractions,  which  teachers  assure  me  would  be  easy  for 
properly  instructed  fifth-grade  pupils. 

The  arithmetic  test  was  made  uniform  for  all,  except  in  the  case 
of  a  few  boys  who  had  left  school,  below  the  sixth  grade.  They 
were  given  a  somewhat  easier  test. 

The  two  sets  of  problems  given  to  all  above  the  fifth  grade  are 
herewith  appended. 

Set  I.    Fundamentals 

1.  If  a  boy  pays  $2.83  for  100  papers,  and  sells  them  at  4  cents  apiece, 
how  much  does  he  make? 

2.  A  flour  merchant  bought  1,437  barrels  of  flour  at  $7  a  barrel.  He 
sold  900  of  these  barrels  at  $9  a  barrel  and  the  remainder  at  $6  a  barrel. 
How  much  did  he  make? 

3.  If  a  train  runs  31^3  miles  an  hour,  how  long  will  it  take  a  train  to 
run  from  Buffalo  to  Omaha,  a  distance  of  1,045  miles? 

4.  A  farmer's  wife  bought  2.75  yards  of  table  linen  at  87  cents  a  yard 
and  16  yards  of  flannel  at  55  cents  a  yard.  She  paid  in  butter  at  27  cents  a 
pound.    How  many  pounds  of  butter  was  she  obliged  to  give? 


THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC 


279 


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280  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

The  first  two  problems  involve  only  simple  operations  in  the 
fundamental  processes  of  multiplication,  subtraction  and  addition. 
The  third  problem  calls  for  knowledge  of  fractions  and  division, 
while  the  fourth  contains  a  decimal. 

The  second  set  involves  nothing  but  fractions  put  in  practical 
form.  Problems  involving  square  root,  per  cent  or  interest,  depend- 
ing more  or  less  on  the  memory  of  a  rule  for  their  solution,  were 
intentionally  left  out. 

It  seems  fair  to  say  that  this  test  represents  the  minimum  amount 
of  arithmetic  that  any  reasonably  equipped  child  should  carry  from 
school  into  life. 

The  method  of  grading  was  as  follows : 

(a)  A  problem  solved  correctly  in  all  particulars  we  called  — 
Right. 

(b)  Where  mechanical  error  only  occurred  we  graded  the 
answer  as  correct  in  —  Principle. 

(c)  The  third  ranking  was  —  Wrong. 

(d)  The  fourth  —  Not  attempted. 

We  feel  that  this  form  shows  the  essential  facts  better  than 
would  any  device  for  indicating  percentages. 

Separate  tables  were  made  for  each  problem  showing  relative 
standing  of  each  grade  on  each  of  the  eight  problems. 

The  papers  and  tables  show  the  following  significant  facts : 

(a)  In  the  three  groups  of  boys  on  a  test  which  should  pre- 
sumably be  equally  easy  for  all,  the  ranks  range  consistently  down- 
ward for  each  grade  from  high  school  to  sixth. 

Group  I  (Night  school) 

The  totals  for  this  group  (as  shown  in  Table  V)  reveal  that  of 
the  boys  of  the  eighth  grade  76  per  cent  solve  correctly  both  as  to 
method  and  mechanical  execution  all  the  problems  in  the  test  on 
fundamentals.  In  like  manner,  60  per  cent  solve  correctly  all  the 
problems  in  the  rectangle  test. 

Of  the  seventh-grade  boys  of  Group  I  56  per  cent  solve  the 
fundamental  tests  and  42  per  cent  the  rectangle  tests. 

In  the  sixth  grade.  Group  I.  the  percentages  are  36  per  cent 
correct  for  the  fundamental  and  34  per  cent  correct  for  the  rectangle 
problems. 


THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC  281 

Group  II  (Apprentice  Schools) 

Table  V  reveals  that  of  high-school  boys  (none  of  which  grade 
appear  in  the  preceding  group)  96  per  cent  solve  correctly  both  as 
to  method  and  mechanical  accuracy  all  the  problems  in  the  funda- 
mental tests,  92  per  cent  of  the  rectangle  tests. 

For  the  8th  grade  the  percentages  are  88  per  cent  and  86  per  cent. 
For  the  7th  grade  76  per  cent  and  67  per  cent. 
For  the  6th  grade  6Q  per  cent  and  31  per  cent. 

Group  III  (Boys  out  of  school) 

High  school,  79  per  cent  on  fundamentals,  86  per  cent  on  the 
rectangle  tests. 

Eighth  grade,  62  per  cent  and  54  per  cent. 
Seventh  grade,  48  per  cent  and  23  per  cent. 
Sixth  grade,  36  per  cent  and  22  per  cent. 

Table  six  shows  the  totals  for  each  grade  throughout  the  three 
groups. 

High  school  —  fundamentals  88  per  cent,  rectangle  89  per  cent. 

Eighth  grade — fundamentals  75  per  cent,  rectangle  67  per  cent. 

Seventh  grade  —  fundamentals  60  per  cent,  rectangle  42  per  cent. 

Sixth  grade  —  fundamentals  46  per  cent,  rectangle  29  per  cent. 

(b)  The  difference  in  favor  of  the  higher  grades  is  not  always 
in  knowledge  of  the  principles  involved  but  in  speed,  accuracy  and 
neatness  —  qualities  that  are  particularly  developed  in  the  school- 
room.   This  is  shown  by  the  papers  themselves. 

When  the  sixth-grade  boy  gets  the  principle  of  his  problem 
wrong  he  becomes  so  involved  that  he  also  fails  in  mechanical 
accuracy,  while  an  eighth-grade  boy,  even  if  he  err  in  the  principle 
of  his  problem,  will  often  carry  it  out  correctly  in  all  other  respects. 
This  fact  largely  accounts  for  the  difference  between  the  higher  and 
lower  grades  in  the  solution  of  the  first  or  easiest  problem  in  fun- 
damentals.   This  difference  is : 

Group  I.  8th  grade,  91  per  cent;  7th,  77  per  cent:  6th,  63  per 
cent. 

Group  II.  8th  grade,  98  per  cent ;  7th,  97  per  cent ;  6th,  S6  per 
cent. 

Group  III.  8th  grade,  90  per  cent ;  7th,  87  per  cent ;  6th.  73  per 
cent. 


282  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

(c)  That  the  difference  between  the  rankings  of  the  grades  is 
not  merely  due  to  a  difference  in  degree  of  mechanical  skill,  but  also 
involves  knowledge  of  principles  is  shown  by  the  discrepancy  between 
the  higher  and  lower  grades  in  the  solution  of  the  fourth,  the  most 
difficult  of  the  fundamental  problems.  The  following  figures  reveal 
this: 

Group  I.  8th  grade,  58  per  cent ;  7th,  32  per  cent ;  6th,  10  per 
cent. 

Group  II.  8th  grade,  80  per  cent ;  7th,  61  per  cent ;  6th,  38  per 
cent. 

Group  III.  8th  grade,  36  per  cent ;  7th,  19  per  cent ;  6th,  0  per 
cent. 

(d)  This  difference  extends  to  the  ability  to  reason  —  to  handle 
the  real  problems  that  come  before  men  in  actual  life.  That  the 
boy  who  leaves  school  in  the  sixth  grade  is  at  a  distinct  disadvantage 
in  comparison  with  the  one  who  remains  longer  in  school  is  shown 
by  the  totals  in  table  six  for  the  work  on  the  rectangle  :  8th  grade,  67 
per  cent,  7th,  42  per  cent,  6th,  29  per  cent.  This  is  more  strikingly 
illustrated  in  the  details  found  in  Table  V,  especially  in  Group  III. 

Group  I.  8th  grade,  60  per  cent ;  7th,  42  per  cent ;  6th,  34  per 
cent. 

Group  II.  8th  grade,  86  per  cent ;  7th,  67  per  cent ;  6th,  31  per 
cent. 

Group  III.  8th  grade,  54  per  cent;  7th,  23  per  cent;  6th,  22  per 
cent. 

The  discrepancy  between  grades  in  ability  to  solve  these  problems 
is  not  due  to  a  difference  in  age.  As  already  noted,  the  average  age 
of  the  boys  from  the  sixth  is  somewhat  greater  than  that  of  those 
in  the  grades  above  them.  Is  the  lower  standing  of  the  lower  grades 
due  in  part  to  lack  of  school  training?  Further  discussion  will  throw 
light  on  this  question. 

We  now  undertake  to  prove  from  our  tables  that  the  discrepancy 
in  the  intellectual  powers  of  the  boy  who  leaves  school  at  the  sixth 
grade,  and  that  of  the  one  who  remains  through  the  seventh,  eighth, 
or  even  beyond,  is  not  merely  due  to  selection  —  that  is,  it  is  not 
due  simply  to  the  fact  that  a  dull  boy  is  more  likely  to  leave  school 
in  the  lower  grades  than  is  his  brighter  schoolmate.  The  difference 
is  due  in  part  to  the  actual  difference  in  school  training.  Our  tables 
distinctly  show  that  the  boy  who  leaves  school  at  the  sixth  grade,  and 


THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC  283 

then  attends  the  night  school  or  the  Apprentice  Schools,  tends  to 
improve  his  intellectual  powers  above  that  of  the  one  who  remains 
out  of  school.  To  prove  this,  note  the  relative  standing  of  the  dif- 
ferent grades  in  the  three  groups. 

In  the  eighth  grade,  12  per  cent  more  boys  of  the  Apprentice 
School  solve  the  fundamentals  rightly  than  did  those  of  the  night 
schools  who  are  not  getting  as  much  drill  in  arithmetic.  In  the 
rectangle  problems  this  difference  is  26  per  cent  in  favor  of  the 
apprentices.  In  the  sixth  grade  the  difference  between  Groups  I 
and  II  is  30  per  cent  in  favor  of  the  Apprentice  Schools.  In  the 
rectangle  problems  for  some  reason  that  is  not  clear  the  difference 
is  the  other  way,  3  per  cent. 

The  difference  between  the  eighth  grade  of  the  night  school  and 
the  eighth  grade  of  those  out  of  school  is  14  per  cent  in  favor  of  the 
former  in  the  fundamentals.  In  the  rectangle  the  difference  is  6 
per  cent  in  favor  of  the  night  schools.  In  the  sixth  grade,  between 
the  night  schools  and  those  out  of  school  no  difference  exists. 
In  the  rectangle  the  difference  is  12  per  cent  in  favor  of  the  night 
schools. 

Assuming,  then,  that  the  same  type  of  boys  quit  school  at  a 
given  grade,  the  one  who  attends  the  night  school  or  the  Apprentice 
Schools  gains  over  the  one  who  does  not.  Is  there  a  natural  selec- 
tion here  ?    The  testimony  of  the  teachers  is  to  the  contrary. 

The  tables  show  that  even  in  the  eighth  grade  a  considerable 
number  of  the  boys  fail  to  solve  these  fifth  and  sixth  grade  problems. 
Other  tables  exist1  which  show  that  a  larger  per  cent  of  students  in 
the  corresponding  grades,  who  are  attending  day  school,  solve  prob- 
lems of  equal  difficulty.  This  would  seem  to  show  an  actual  total 
loss  to  the  boy  who  leaves  school  before  completing  the  eighth  grade. 

The  arithmetic  tests.  Table  V,  reveal  a  marked  superiority  on 
the  part  of  the  boys  of  the  Apprentice  Schools  over  those  of  the 
night  schools,  and  over  those  out  of  school,  the  difference  often  being 
as  great  as  30  per  cent.  This  would  seem  to  be  due  to  the  direct 
correlation  of  the  work  in  arithmetic  in  the  Apprentice  Schools  with 
the  trade  the  boys  are  learning.  In  other  subjects,  such  as  English, 
the  apprentices  were  by  no  means  superior  to  the  other  boys. 

1  Below  is  a  table  showing  the  different  grades  of  the  Apprentice  Schools,  the  night 
schools  and  the  boys  out  of  school,  together  with  the  per  cent  of  the  problems  they  worked 
right.  Parallel  with  each  of  these  is  given  the  grade  and  the  per  cent  right  for  a  group 
of  day-school  boys  who  were  given  exactly  the  same  test  in  arithmetic.  The  number  of 
boys  in  the  day  schools  was  approximately  the  same  ts  the  number  in  the  other  groups. 
It  will  be  noted  that  in  the  "  fundamentals  "   the   day-school  boys   fall  below   the  appren- 


284 


REPORT  OX  J'OCATIOXAL  TRAIMXG 


Eighteen  boys  of  the  fifth  grade,  nine  of  the  fourth  and  one  of 
the  third  were  tested.  For  them,  the  two  least  difficult  problems 
that  were  used  for  the  testing  of  the  higher  grade  boys,  and  two  yet 
more  simple  were  used.    The  problems  follow : 

1.  What  will  24  quarts  of  cream  cost  at  $1.20  a  gallon? 

2.  If  a  boy  pays  $2.83  for  100  papers  and  sells  them  at  4  cents  apiece, 
how  much  does  he  make? 

3.  If  I  buy  8  dozen  pencils  at  37  cents  a  dozen  and  sell  them  at  5  cents 
apiece,  how  much  do  I  make? 

4.  A  flour  merchant  bought  1,437  barrels  of  flour  at  $7  a  barrel.  He 
sold  800  of  these  barrels  at  $9  a  barrel,  and  the  remainder  at  $6  a  barrel. 
How  much  did  he  make? 

This  test  is  certainly  not  more  difficult  than  those  employed  for 
pupils  of  the  fourth  grade  of  the  public  schools.  The  rectangle  tests 
were  also  given  to  these  twenty-eight  boys.  Reference  to  Tables  IV 
and  IV-A  will  reveal  the  pitiful  inability  of  a  large  majority  of 
these  boys  to  solve  even  the  most  simple  of  these  problems. 

The  total  number  of  these  boys  tested  in  arithmetic  was,  in  fun- 
damentals, 655,  and  in  the  rectangle  610. 


tices,  but  in  the  sixth  and  seventh  grades  they  are  ahead  in  the  solution  of  the  "  rec- 
tangle "  problems.  The  eighth  grade  of  the  night  schools  is  ahead  in  the  "  fundamentals," 
but  in  no  other  case.  The  day-school  boys  outrank  the  boys  out  of  school  straight  through. 
The  work  with  the  day-school  pupils  was  done  by  S.  J.  Staples,  whose  results  have 
not  as  yet  been  published. 


FUNDAMENTALS 

RECTANGLE 

Grade  8 

Grade  7 

Grade  6 

Grade  8 

Grade  7 

Grade  6 

Rt.  %      |      Rt.  % 

Rt.% 

Rt.  % 

Rt.% 

Rt.% 

Aoprentice  Schools. ,  ,    , 

88                   76 

66 

S6 

62 

31 

68                   60 

44 

79 

63 

39 

76                   58 

38 

60 

42 

34 

66 

60 

44 

79 

63 

39 

Boys  Out  of  School j         62 

48 

36 

54 

23 

22 

66 

60 

44 

79 

63 

39 

THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC 


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THE  TEST  IN  ARITHMETIC 
Table  V. —  Fundamentals  (Set  I) 


293 


LOCATION 

Grade 

No. 

Rt. 
Per  cent 

Pr. 

Per  cent 

W.       i  Not  Att. 
Per  cent  j  Per  cent 

H.  S. 
8 
7 
6 

6 
82 
33 
21 

96 
88 
76 
66 

4 

7 

9 

11 

In  the  Apprentice  Schools  .  .  . 

4 
14 
14 

1 
10 

In  the  night  schools 

8 
7 
6 

111 
111 

86 

76 
56 
36 

9 

11 

6 

16 
27 

47 

1 

6 

13 

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8 
7 
6 

19 

103 

36 

19 

79 
62 
48 
36 

7 

12 

9 

6 

15 
25 
41 
49 

3 

3 
10 

Table  V  shows  the  location  of  the  boys,  the  grade,  the  number 
of  boys,  the  per  cent  of  problems  worked  correctly  by  each  grade, 
etc.,  in  the  test  on  fundamentals  for  all  three  groups. 

Table  V-A. —  Rectangle  Test  (Set  II) 


LOCATION 

Grade 

No. 

Rt. 

Per  cent 

Pr. 

Per  cent 

w. 

Per  cent 

Not  Att. 
Per  cent 

In  the  Apprentice  Schools  .  . 

H.  S. 

8 
7 
6 

6 
81 
35 
22 

92 
86 
62 
31 

8 
11 
26 
51 

3 
13 

18 

In  the  night  schools 

8 
7 
6 

100 
98 
72 

60 
42 
34 

30 
38 
37 

8 
22 
29 

Boys  out  of  school 

H.  S. 

8 
7 
6 

20 
98 
35 
16 

86 
54 
23 
22 

13 
33 
47 
41 

2 

14 

31 
37 

Table  V-A  is  made  up  the  same  as  Table  V,  but  shows  the  grade 
and  group  standing  in  the  rectangle  test. 

Table  VI. —  Fundamentals  (Set  I) 


LOCATION 

Grade 

No. 

Rt. 
Per  cent 

Pr. 
Per  cent 

Per  cent 

Not  Att. 
Per  cent 

Apprentice  Schools 

H.  S. 
8 
7 
6 

25 
296 
180 
126 

88 
75 
60 
46 

6 

9 

10 

8 

8 
15 
27 
37 

Night  school 

Boys  out  of  school 

1 

3 

11 

294 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Table  VI  is  based  on  Table  V  and  shows  the  comparative  stand- 
ing of  the  different  grades,  rather  than  the  group  comparison.  To 
illustrate,  the  whole  number  of  boys  of  all  three  groups  of  eighth- 
grade  standing  have  been  added  together  and  their  averages  com- 
pared with  the  total  averages  of  the  sixth  and  seventh  grades. 


Table  VI-A. —  Rectangle,  Test  (Set  II) 


LOCATION 

Grade 

No. 

Rt. 
Per  cent 

Pr. 

Per  cent 

W. 
Per  cent 

Not  Att. 
Per  cent 

H.  S. 
8 
7 
6 

26 
279 
168 
110 

89 
67 
42 
29 

11 

25 
37 

43 

1 

Night  school 

8 

Boys  out  of  school 

22 

28 

Table  VI-A  is  based  on  Table  V-A,  and  is  similar  to  Table  VI, 
except  that  it  deals  with  the  rectangle  problems  while  Table  VI  deals 
with  the  fundamentals. 


THE  TEST  IN  ENGLISH  295 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  TEST  IN   ENGLISH 


The  following  paragraph  was  twice  read  slowly  and  distinctly 
to  89  apprentice  boys,  who  were  asked  to  reproduce  it  in  their  own 
language. 

Test  I 

There  are  a  great  many  accidents  in  the  industrial  life  of  to-day. 
Many  of  these  accidents  prove  fatal.  We  are  constructing  higher  buildings, 
cars  and  trains  run  faster,  and  the  extensive  use  of  machinery  has  greatly 
increased  the  danger.  Since  every  year  hundreds  of  men  and  women  are 
killed  or  crippled,  it  is  very  important  that  employers  guard  dangerous 
machinery,  provide  fire  escapes,  keep  the  working-rooms  well  lighted  and  look 
after  the  health  and  safety  of  the  workingman.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is 
extremely  important  that  the  employees  learn  and  obey  the  rules  which  are 
made  for  their  protection  in  factories,  on  trains  and  in  other  places. 

The  physical  condition  often  being  such  as  to  render  reading 
aloud  undesirable,  and  because  we  hoped  by  the  change  to  secure 
much  valuable  information  as  to  the  ambitions  and  ethical  ideas  of 
the  boys,  the  following  test  was  substituted  which  had  the  additional 
advantage  of  not  seeming  to  be  a  set  English  test : 

Test  II 

1.  Why  did  you  take  up  the  kind  of  work  you  are  now  doing?  Do  you 
think  it  is  a  job  in  which  you  can  advance?  What  makes  you  think  so? 
Give  your  reasons  fully.  If  you  would  like  to  do  something  else,  tell  what 
it  is.     Give  your  reasons  fully. 

2.  If  you  were  going  to  hire  a  boy  to  work  for  you,  what  would  you 
want  to  know  about  him? 

3.  Do  you  think  it  would  be  right  to  take  your  own  boy's  wages?  Why. 
or  why  not? 

If  you  do  think  it  is  right,  how  long  would  you  take  his  wages?  Give 
reasons. 

4.  A  boy  said :  "  I  know  ten  good  men  who  are  doctors  and  ten  bad 
men  who  are  policemen.  So  doctors  are  better  men  than  policemen."  Did  he 
prove  it?    Why,  or  why  not? 

5.  (a)  If  a  man  is  a  good  batter,  will  he  be  a  good  base  runner?  Why, 
or  why  not? 

(b)  If  all  boys  who  are  good  in  arithmetic  are  good  in  spelling,  will  all 
the  boys  who  are  good  in  spelling  be  good  in  arithmetic?    Why.  or  why  not? 


296  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 

Questions  four  and  five  were  incorporated  for  the  purpose  of  a 
simple  test  in  logic.  We  soon  discovered  that  the  questions  were 
beyond  the  capacity  of  the  boys  to  answer.  Hence  we  graded  the 
answers  to  these  two  questions  merely  on  their  form,  making  note 
of  the  fact  that  there  were  a  few  boys  who  saw  their  logical  sig- 
nificance. 

Methods  of  grading  English 

1st  Test 

Reproduction  of  thought 50  per  cent 

Form   50  per  cent 

In  form  were  included  paragraphing,  punctuation,  capitalization, 
syntax  and  sentence  structure. 

The  spelling  and  handwriting  were  also  graded  and  shown  in 
separate  tables. 

2d  Test 

General  intelligence   revealed   in  answering  ques- 
tions   50  per  cent 

Form   50  per  cent 

The  results  of  the  English  test 

As  between  grades  the  results  shows  the  same  condition  that 
obtains  in  the  arithmetic.  That  is,  the  boy  who  leaves  school  in 
the  sixth  grade  is  at  a  decided  disadvantage  as  compared  with  the 
one  who  remains  longer  in  school.  This  is  also  true  in  spelling  and 
writing. 

The  comparison  between  groups  can  not  be  carried  out,  as  the 
Apprentice  Schools  did  not  have  the  same  examination  that  was 
given  to  the  night-school  boys  and  those  out  of  school. 

The  fact  that  the  boys  out  of  school  did  better  on  the  same  Eng- 
lish test  than  the  night-school  boys  (a  reversal  of  the  arithmetic 
results)  might  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  the  per  cent  of  foreign- 
ers was  larger  in  the  night  school. 

Note  should  be  made  of  the  almost  hopeless  lack  of  facility  of 
sixth-grade  boys,  and  the  few  below  that  grade  whom  we  tested,  to 
express  themselves  in  writing,  even  when  they  seemed  to  sense  what 
they  desired  to  express.  They  would  begin  sentences  and  not  complete 
them,  leave  out  predicates  and,  in  general,  reveal  a  complete  lack 
of  ability  to  express  a  logical  sequence.  To  illustrate  this  point  a 
few  papers  are  here  appended.     The  papers  are  in  answer  to  the 


THE  TEST  IN  ENGLISH  297 

English  questions,  Set  II,  and  are  copied  just  as  they  were  received 
from  the  boys.  The  grade  and  age  of  the  boy  is  given  at  the  top 
of  each  paper: 

Sixth  Grade,  age  sixteen 

3.  No  you  should  not  take  the  wages  of  the  boy  becose  he  wonse  it 
him  selve. 

I  would  take  it  as  long  as  he  wone  to  le  me  take  it. 

4.  The  boy  said  he  nose  ten  good  men  at  are  doctors  and  ten  bad  men 
who  are  policemen. 

5.  sure  if  he  kin  run  fast  then  he  kin  be  a  base  ball  paler. 

houv  are  good  in  Arithmetic  are  good  in  spelling  and  all  boys  good  in 
spelling  are  not  good  in  Arithmetic. 

Fifth  Grade,  age  sixteen 
Because  i  want  it. 
Yes. 

Because  is  simply  work  easily  and  you  dirty  your  self  up. 
I  ask  him  how  old  he  his  if  he  would  not  old  enough  i  would  not  hire 
him. 

Yes. 

Because  if  not  he  spent  it  all. 

I  take  his  wages  under  19  years  of  age. 

Because  if  not  he  be  a  bum  if  he  be  about  16  years  of  age. 

Doctors  are  better  than  policeman. 

Because  policemen  are  the  biggest  bums  out. 

Fifth  Grade,  age  fifteen 

1.  Because  I  think  I  can  get  a  good  out  side  work. 
Yes  I  do. 

Because  I  now  other  boys  that  done  the  same  work. 

I  would  like  a  out  side  job  because  inside  dose  not  agree  with  me. 

2.  I  would  want  to  now  if  he  was  smart. 

Fourth  Grade,  age  sixteen 

1.  "  I  did  not  work  i  would  have  nothing  to  eat. 

We  do  thing  that  a  job  in  which  you  can  advance  what  makes  me 
thing  so. 

2.  he  is  going  to  earn  his  money  yeas  it  would  be  bettre 

3.  to  take  your  one  wages  yes  it  is  wright  to  take  your  none 

4.  I  know  if  a  man  is  a  good  batter  will  he  be  a  good  bas. 

5.  They  will  lern  some  trad. 

Fourth  Grade,  age  eighteen 
I  took  this  work  to  make  a  liviny. 

In  questions  two  and  three  which  were  designed  to  reveal  the 
moral  conceptions  of  the  boys,  the  answers  were  rather  conven- 
tional.    The  answers  to  question  two  (If  you  were  going  to  hire  a 


298 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


boy  to  work  for  you  what  would  you  want  to  know  about  him?) 
suggested  that  the  boys  may  often  have  filled  out  blanks  in  employ- 
ment bureaus. 

The  answers  to  question  three  (Do  you  think  it  would  be  right 
to  take  your  own  boy's  wages?)  seemed  more  real,  doubtless, 
because  it  had  to  do  with  the  genuine  daily  experience  of  many  of 
the  boys.  Where  a  boy  had  facility  in  expression  the  answer  was 
often  genuinely  discriminative  as,  for  instance,  many  said  "  yes  " 
because  the  parents  feed  and  clothe  the  boy.  Some  said  "  yes,"  if 
needed  in  the  family,  and  if  not  needed  it  would  yet  be  right  to  take 
part  of  the  wages  to  be  saved  for  the  boy.  They  usually  felt  that 
a  boy  who  earned  should  be  allowed  some  spending  money. 

The  following  tables  show  the  grade  of  advancement,  the  num- 
bers, and  the  per  cents  for  the  different  groups,  also  the  totals  for 
the  different  grades  of  the  three  groups. 


AVERAGES 


Table  VII 
Boys  Out  of  School 


Table  VIII 
Night  Schools 


Grade 

No. 

Per 
cent 
Eng. 

Per 

cent 
Sp. 

Per 
cent 
W. 

H.  S 

8 

17 
78 
32 
12 
13 

86 
76 
63 
54 
22 

96 
78 
76 
68 
32 

83 
79 
74 
70 
41 

7 

6 

5 

Grade 


H.  S. 


Per 

Per 

No. 

cent 

cent 

Eng. 

Sp. 

85 

73 

87 

65 

61 

79 

47 

39 

62 

Per 
cent 
W. 


76 
73 
63 


Table  IX 
Apprentice  Schools 


Table  X 
Total  Average 


Grade 

No. 

Per 
cent 
Eng. 

Per 

cent 
Sp. 

Per 

cent 
W. 

Grade 

No. 

Per 

cent 
Eng. 

Per 
cent 
Sp. 

Per 
cent 
W. 

H.  S 

8 

6 
46 
23 
14 

78 
70 
51 
38. 

84 
81 
68 
61 

83 

77 
69 
67 

H.  S 

8 

7 

6 

5 

23 

209 

120 

73 

13 

82 

73 
58 
44 
22 

90 
82 
74 
64 
32 

83 

77 

7 

72 

6 

67 

41 

Tables  VII,  VIII  and  IX  show  the  grade  (Gr.),  the  number 
(Xo.),  of  boys,  and  the  per  cents  in  English  (Eng.),  spelling  (Sp.), 
and  writing  (W)  for  the  three  groups.  The  Table  X  shows  the 
average  per  cent  of  the  different  grades  of  the  three  groups  added 
together. 


THE  TEST  IN  CIVIL  GOVERNMENT  AND  HISTORY         299 


CHAPTER   XVII 

THE  TEST  IN  CIVIL  GOVERNMENT  AND  HISTORY 


One  hundred  and  fifty-two  of  the  boys  out  of  school  altogether 
were  quizzed  orally  on  questions  of  civil  government  and  United 
States  history,  each  boy  being  talked  to  for  about  ten  minutes  and 
the  result  noted  by  the  questioner.  In  addition  to  these  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-two  boys,  twenty-one  boys  of  one  room  of  the 
Apprentice  Schools  were  given  a  written  test  covering  the  same 
ground  in  civil  government  that  was  covered  in  the  oral  examination. 
As  these  boys  had  had  no  special  drill  in  this  subject,  their  marks 
are  included  in  the  civil  government  table  for  the  other  boys. 

Little  comment  need  be  made  as  the  tables  speak  for  themselves 
very  plainly.  Very  few  of  the  boys  could  be  termed  good  in  this 
test,  not  many  were  even  fair,  and  by  far  the  larger  per  cent  were 
marked  poor  or  poor  minus,1  which  in  this  table  means  very  close 
to  zero. 

Taking  the  matter  up  from  the  standpoint  of  the  grades,  it  may 
be  said  that  the  eighth-grade  boy  has  enough  knowledge  of  civil 
government  so  that  the  more  important  points  of  the  subject  will 
probably  clear  up  in  his  mind  as  he  gets  a  little  older  and  reads  the 
newspapers  more.  The  same  thing  can  be  said  for  a  very  few  of 
the  seventh-grade  boys.  The  information  of  the  sixth  and  fifth 
grade  boys  is  so  meager  along  the  lines  of  civil  government  and 
history  that  it  seems  doubtful  whether  they  will  ever  have  under- 
standing of  what  democratic  government  is. 

It  was  also  a  disappointing  fact  that  the  boys  who  were  nearing 
their  majority  were  the  very  poorest,  as  a  rule,  while  the  younger 
boys  fresh  from  school  were  able  to  answer  with  much  more  facility. 

A  list  of  questions  similar  to  those  asked  of  the  boys  is  here 
appended,  and  the  tables  then  follow,  showing  the  grade,  age  and 
rank  that  was  given  to  each  boy  in  this  test. 

Civil  Government 
Who  has  power  to  make  the  laws  for  the  United  States  government? 
What  are  some  of  the  duties  of  the  President  of  the  United  States? 

1  The  grade  "poor  double  minus"  is  also  used,  with  the  symbol  "poor ." 


300 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


How  do  Congressmen  obtain  their  office? 

How  are  Senators  elected?  How  many  are  there  from  each  State? 
What  is  the  highest  state  office?  Who  holds  that  office  in  Illinois? 
By  whom  are  the  laws  of  the  State  made? 

Who  is  the  Mayor  of  Chicago?     What  are  some  of  the  duties  of 
Mayor?    What  are  the  duties  of  the  City  Council? 


the 


History 

Name  the  most  important  wars  that  have  been  fought  in  this  country. 
Name  at  least  one  leader  on  the  American  side  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 
Name  the  most  important  leaders  on  both  sides  in  the  Civil  War. 
Who  was  President  of  the  United  States  during  the  Civil  War? 
Who  was  first  President  of  the  United  States? 

Name   the   last   three    Presidents    of   the    United    States,   including   the 
present  one. 

Table  XI. — Civil  Government  Summary  —  Boys  Out  of  School 


Grade 

No. 

Good 

Fair 

Poor 

Poor  — 

Poor 

H.  S.. 

19 
86 
43 
13 
10 
3 

6 

4 

9 

18 

1 

4 
29 
11 

2 

8 

18 
14 

17 

7 

17 

6.. 

11 

5.. 

10 

4  . 

3 

THE  TEST  IN  CIVIL  GOVERNMENT  AND  HISTORY         301 
XI-A. —  Civil  Government  Details  —  Boys  Out  of  School 


H.S. 

Age 

H.  S. 

Age 

H.  S. 

Age 

H.  S. 

Age 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

16 

Good 

18 

Good 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

17 

Good 

16 

Fair 

17 

Good 

17 

Good 

19 

Fair 

18 

Fair 

19 

Poor . . 

17 

Good 

19 

Poor 

8th  grade 

Age 

8th  grade 

Age 

8th  grade 

Age 

8th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

15 

Poor 

18 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor  — .... 

15 

Fair 

17 

Poor — . . . . 

20 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor  — 

17 

Poor  — . . . . 

16 

Good 

16 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor . . 

16 

Poor  — 

16 

Poor 

15 

Poor 

16 

Good 

15 

Fair 

16 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

15 

Fair 

15 

Poor . . 

19 

Good 

15 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

16 

Fair 

16 

Fair 

16 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor  — . . . . 

15 

Good 

16 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

18 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

18 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

19 

Poor 

17 

Poor — 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Fair 

16 

Poor  — 

17 

Poor — . . . . 

17 

Poor  — .... 

18 

Poor  — .... 

19 

Poor 

19 

Fair 

18 

Poor . . 

19 

Fair 

16 

Poor — 

18 

Poor 

18 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Poor — . .  .  . 

16 

Poor 

18 

Poor 

16 

Poor — 

18 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

18 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

14 

Poor . . 

15 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Fair 

16 

Poor — . .  .  . 

15 

Fair 

17 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

20 

Poor . . 

19 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

Poor 

Poor . . 

7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

17 

Poor  — 

19 

Poor . . 

16 

Poor 

17 

Poor ..  . 

19 

Poor . . 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

18 

Poor 

16 

Poor — . . . . 

16 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Poor 

17 

Poor — . . . . 

17 

Poor 

19 

Poor  — . . . . 

17 

Poor 

18 

.    17 

Poor  — .... 

15 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor  — 

15 

Poor 

19 

Poor  — .... 

18 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor 

19 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Poor 

17 

Poor . . 

20 

Poor 

20 

Poor . . 

20 

Poor  — 

19 
20 

Poor  — .  ..  . 
Poor  — .... 

19 

18 

Poor 

Poor  — .... 
Poor . . 

18 

Poor 

Poor ..  . 

Poor . . 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

Poor ..  . 

Poor . 

Poor ..  . 

Poor ..  . 

17 

16 
20 

Poor 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

18 
16 
16 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

16 
17 
15 

Poor 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

17 

17 
19 

302 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


XI-A. —  Civil  Government  Details  —  Boys  Out  of  School 

Continued. 


5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

Poor ..  . 

Poor .. . 

Poor ..  . 

19 
15 
17 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

20 

17 
17 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

16 

18 

Poor . 

Poor . 

18 
17 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

17 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor . . 

16 

Table  XII. —  History  Summary  —  Boys  Out  of  School 


Grade 

No. 

Good 

Fair 

Poor 

Poor  — 

Poor 

H.  S 

18 
79 
29 
13 
10 
3 

7 
4 

9 

33 

1 

1 

2 
24 

14 
1 

8 

11 

7 

7 

7 

6 

5 

7 

11 

10 

4 

3 

Table  XII-A. —  History  Details  —  Boys  Out  of  School 


H.  S. 

Age 

H.  S. 

Age 

H.  s. 

Age 

H.  S. 

Age 

Good 

16 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

16 

Good 

18 

Good 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

17 

Good 

16 

Fair 

17 

Good 

17 

Good 

19 

Fair 

18 

Fair 

19 

Poor 

17 

Good 

19 

8th  grade 

Age 

Sth  grade 

Age 

8th  grade 

Age 

8th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

15 

Poor 

18 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

15 

Fair 

17 

Poor  — .... 

20 

Poor  — .... 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor  — 

17 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Good 

16 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

15 

Poor 

16 

Good 

15 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

17 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

15 

Fair 

15 

Poor 

19 

Good 

15 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

16 

Fair 

16 

Fair 

16 

Fair 

17 

Poor  — .... 

15 

Good 

16 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

18 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

18 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

19 

Fair 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

16 

Poor — 

17 

Poor 

17 

Poor  — .... 

18 

Poor  — .... 

19 

Fair 

19 

Fair 

18 

Poor . . 

19 

Fair 

16 

Poor  — 

18 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

16 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

18 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

18 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

18 

Poor . . 

16 

Fair 

17 

Fair 

14 

Fair 

15 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

16 

Poor  — .... 

15 

Fair 

17 

THE  TEST  IN  CIVIL  GOVERNMENT  AND  HISTORY 


303 


Table  XII-A. —  History  Details  —  Boys  Out  of  School 

Continued. 


7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

7th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

17 

Poor  — . . . . 

19 

Poor . . 

16 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor 

19 

Poor . . 

16 

Poor 

16 

Fair 

18 

Poor 

16 

Poor — . . . . 

16 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor  — .... 

16 

Poor 

17 

Poor  — 

17 

Poor 

19 

Poor  — . .  .  . 

17 

Poor 

18 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

15 

Poor . . 

17 

Poor — 

15 

Poor 

19 

Poor 

18 

Poor  — .... 

18 

Poor 

19 

Poor 

17 

Poor 

18 

Poor 

16 

Poor 

17 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

6th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

Poor 

Poor 

Poor . .  . 

17 

16 
20 

Fair 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

18 
16 
16 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

16 
17 

15 

Poor 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

17 

17 
19 

5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

5th  grade 

Age 

Poor 

Poor 

Poor . . . 

19 
15 
17 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

20 

17 
17 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

16 

18 

Poor . . 

Poor . . 

18 
17 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

4th  grade 

Age 

Poor . . . 

17 

Poor . . 

18 

Poor . . 

16 

304  REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 


From  the  question  blank  which  was  given  the  boys  to  fill  out 
we  were  able  to  learn  their  present  occupations,  and  the  answer  to 
question  one  of  our  English  test  revealed  what  the  boys  would 
like  to  do  in  the  future. 

The  first  series  of  tables  (XIII  and  XIII-A)  that  follows  set 
forth  the  desired  occupation  of  350  boys,  and  parallel  with  this  are 
columns  showing  the  age  and  present  employment  of  the  same  boys. 

Out  of  the  350  cases  there  were  117  who  expressed  themselves 
as  satisfied  with  their  present  employment.  A  further  analysis 
shows  that  42  of  the  117  either  have  trades  or  are  apprentices  learn- 
ing trades. 

There  were  19  out  of  the  350  who  expressed  themselves  as  being 
dissatisfied  with  what  they  were  doing,  but  who  did  not  state  what 
they  wanted  to  do.    Only  two  of  these  had  trades. 

There  were  nine  who  have  trades  that  did  not  give  promise  of 
being  very  profitable,  and  they  desired  to  change  to  other  trades. 

Adding  those  who  have  trades,  or  are  apprentices,  to  those  who 
are  not  learning  trades,  but  would  like  to,  we  have  170  out  of  the 
350  cases,  or  49  per  cent.  There  are  35  more  who  wish  to  get  into 
officework,  or  business.  This  makes  11  per  cent.  Thus,  60  per  cent 
of  the  boys  want  trade  or  business  training.  It  is  the  writer's 
belief,  also,  that  a  considerable  number  of  the  boys  who  stated  that 
they  were  satisfied  did  so  merely  because  they  were  just  out  of  school 
and  had  not  given  much  thought  to  what  they  would  like  to  do  ulti- 
mately. A  year  or  two  later  they  would  swell  the  per  cent  of  those 
who  desire  to  get  into  the  trades,  or  business. 

The  next  table  (XIV)  shows  what  a  number  of  boys  are  doing, 
but  fails  to  reveal  what  they  might  desire  to  do.  This  was  because 
they  were  given  the  information  blank  to  fill  out,  but  were  not  given 
the  English  test  because  of  lack  of  time,  which  was  explained  earlier 
in  the  paper. 

Following  this  is  a  short  table  (XV)  of  boys  who  apparently 
through  inability  failed  to  fill  out  the  information  blank  or  answer 


PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 


305 


our  English  questions  so  that  we  could  tell  what  they  were  doing,  or 
what  they  desired  to  do.  These,  for  the  most  part,  were  of  the 
sixth  grade. 

The  last  table  (XVI)  is  based  on  those  preceding  and  shows 
the  kinds  of  work  which  the  boys  mentioned,  and  the  number  of 
boys  which  desired  each  kind  of  work. 

Table  XIII. —  8th  Grade  Night  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

17 

Hardware  store 

Satisfied 

17 

Errands 

15 

Errands 

17 
18 

Clerk,  office 

Satisfied 

Bookbinding 

Satisfied 

22 

Elevator  operator 

16 

Door  boy. 

Satisfied 

17 

Entry  clerk 
Music  store  clerk 

Satisfied 

16 

Satisfied 

16 

Stock  boy 

Satisfied 

15 

Shipping  clerk 

Satisfied 

20 

Pressman-printer 

Satisfied 

16 

Office 

Satisfied 

16 

Tailor 

Satisfied 

19 

Patternmaker's  apprentice 

Satisfied 

16 
17 

Satisfied 

Jeweler 

Satisfied 

16 

Pressman-printer 

Satisfied 

21 

Printer 

Satisfied 

16 

Printer 

Satisfied 

15 
15 

Errands 

Satisfied 

Music  store  clerk 

Satisfied 

15 

Office 

Satisfied 

16 

Machine  shop 

Office 

Satisfied 

16 

16 
17 

Satisfied 

Office 

Satisfied 

Printer 

Satisfied 

18 

Special  messenger  post  office 
Postal  service 

Satisfied 

15 

Satisfied 

21 

Telegraph  operator 

Dissatisfied 

20 

Clerk 

Dissatisfied 

16 

Interpreter  and  translator 

Dissatisfied 

16 

Errands 

Dissatisfied 

22 

Plumber 

Dissatisfied 

16 
16 

Office 

Dissatisfied 

Office 

Traveling  salesman 

20 

Clerk 

Street  car  conductor 

22 

Veneer  cutter 

Theater  decorator 

18 
18 
16 

Painter  and  decorator 

Boat  builder 

Painter 

Engraver 

Office 

Undetermined 

15 

Office  bov 

Undetermined 

15 

Errands 

Undetermined 

16 

Office 

306 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Table  XIII. —  8th  Grade  Night  School 
Continued. 


Desired  employment 

Business 

Business 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade. 

Machinist 

Machinist 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrical  Engineer 

Typewriter  repairer 

Bank 

Draughtsman 

Insurance 

Bookkeeper 

Bookkeeper 

Architect 

Architect 

Letter  carrier 

Letter  carrier 

Special  delivery  P.  O 

Pharmacist 

Pharmacist 

Railroad  office 

Chemist 

Automobile  machinist. .  .  . 

Office 

Office 

Office 

Government  office 

Railroad  mail  clerk 

Grain  buyer 

Chauffeur 

Telegraph  operator 

Telegraph  operator 

Railroad  engineer 

Clerk 

Farmer 

Farmer 


Age 

Present  employment 

20 

Stenographer 

18 

Shipping  clerk 

19 

Filing  clerk 

16 

Machine  shop 

18 

Page,  Library 

16 

Engraver 

17 

Office 

16 

Machine  shop 

17 

Office 

16 

Office 

16 

Typewriter  deliverer 

18 

Filing  clerk 

16 

Window-shade  maker 

15 

Office  boy 

15 

Bagmaker 

21 

Electrician 

16 

Office 

19 

Student 

17 

Special  delivery  messenger  P.  O. 

20 

Shipping  clerk 

18 

Box  factory 

20 

Cigarmaker 

18 

Wire-frame  maker 

16 

Office 

16 

Messenger 

17 

Stock  boy 

18 

Express  driver 

18 

Furniture  packer 

15 

Factory 

20 

Printer 

24 

Painter 

19 

Cloth  roller 

18 

Packer 

16 

Office 

18 

Office 

17 

Office 

16 

Order  department 

22 

House  work 

20 

Order  clerk 

7th  Grade  Night  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

17 
20 
18 
14 
22 
16 
17 
19 

Register's  clerk 
Machine  shop 

Sign  lettering 
Jewelry  delivery 
Shipping  clerk 
Driver 

Furniture  finisher 
Clerk 

PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 


307 


7th  Grade  Night  School 
Continued. 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

Satisfied 

15 

Office 

19 

Printer 

Satisfied 

Printer 

16 

Pharmacist's  apprentice 

Satisfied 

18 

Filing  clerk 

Satisfied 

17 

Photographer 

Satisfied 

17 

Errands 

18 

Sheet-metal  worker 

Satisfied 

16 

Errands 

Satisfied 

18 
15 

Satisfied 

Grocer  clerk 

Satisfied 

20 

Printer 

Satisfied 

18 

Shipping  clerk 

Satisfied 

21 

Electrotype 

Satisfied 

15 

Engraver 

Satisfied 

16 

Patternmaker  apprentice 

Satisfied 

21 

Clerk,  office 

Satisfied 

17 

Trimmer 

17 

Trimmer 

16 

Office 

Dissatisfied 

19 

Filing  clerk 

Dissatisfied 

17 

Stock  keeper 

Dissatisfied 

15 

Office 

15 

Errands 

Undetermined 

22 

Floor  walker 

Undetermined 

16 

Butcher's  clerk 

Undetermined 

21 

Clerk 

16 

Machine  shop 

Business 

17 

Telegraph  operator 

Business 

17 

Clerk 

Trade 

18 

Filing  orders 

Trade 

18 

Machine  shop 

Trade 

16 

Stock  keeper 

Machinist 

17 

Wiring  operator 

Machinist 

16 
16 
14 

Machinist 

Printer 

Machinist 

Messenger 

Electrician 

19 

Transfer  checker 

Electrician 

16 

Office 

Letter  carrier 

22 

Freight  hand 

Apprentice 
Office 

Draughtsman 

18 

Office,  railroad 

20 

Civil  engineer 

17 

Jewelry  deliverer 

Piano  tuner 

18 

Final  inspector  of  pianos 
Butcher 

Farmer 

17 

18 

Office 

Architect 

17 

Architect's  office 

Navy 

16 

Office 

Printer 

15 

Messenger 

Tinsmith 

15 

Wrapper 

Stenographer 

21 

Claim  adjuster 

Traveling  salesman 

22 

Stock  keeper 
Unemployed 

Clerk 

20 

Structural  engineer 

308 


REPORT  OX  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


6th  Grade  Xight  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

Satisfied 

17 

Stockkeeper 

Satisfied 

16 

Signpainter 

Satisfied 

16 

Chauffeur 

Satisfied 

15 

Office 

Satisfied 

18 

Steamfitter's  apprentice 

Satisfied 

Printer's  apprentice 

21 

Candymaker 

Satisfied 

22 

Carriagemaker 

Satisfied 

24 

Carpenter 

Satisfied 

16 

Presser,  tailor 

Satisfied 

16 

Special  delivery  messenger 

Satisfied 

Contractor's  assistant 
Driver 

Dissatisfied 

16 

Dissatisfied .  .                  

Cigarmaker 

Dissatisfied .  .                      

Bottle  washer 
Paper  box  factory 

Dissatisfied .  .                

Dissatisfied 

15 

Tailor's  shop  boy 

Undetermined 

20 

Fireman 

Undetermined 

15 

Messenger 

Undetermined 

20 

Driver 

Undetermined 

20 

Fur  operator 

Undetermined 

Wrapper 

Undetermined         

Milk  business 
Machine  shop 
Office 

Undetermined 

Trade 

15 

Trade 

Machine  shop 

Trade 

16 

Errands 

Trade 

16 

Errands 

Electrician 

17 

Elevator  operator 

Plumber 

17 

Wrapper 

Typewriter 

18 

Gold  burnisher 

Office 

15 

Buttonmaker 

Office 

16 

Wrapper 

Office 

20 

Cigarmaker 

Telegraph  operator 

15 

Office 

Machinist 

Bottle  washer 
Office 

Machinist 

15 

Carpenter 

20 

Wrapper 

Printer 

15 

Errands 

PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 
Table  XIII-A. —  High-school  Boys  Out  of  School 


309 


Desired  employment 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Dissatisfied 

Trade 

Draughtsman 

Mechanical  engineer 

Lineman 

Electrician 

Lawyer 

Pharmacist 


Present  employment 


Machinist's  helper 

Telephone  inspector 

Tube  boy 

Order  picker 

Messenger 

Record  clerk 

Order  clerk 

Office 

Errands 

Pricer 

Foundry 

Carrier 

Machine  shop 

Machine  shop 

Lineman's  helper 

Office 

Lineman's  helper 

Office 


8th  Grade  Boys  Out  of  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Satisfied 

16 
15 
17 
17 
16 
18 
19 
17 
16 
16 
15 
15 
15 
17 
17 
17 
17 
16 
15 
16 
17 
17 
17 
15 
16 
15 
15 
20 
16 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied -. 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied . . .  v 

Satisfied 

Business 

Business 

Business 

Business 

Business 

Business 

Business 

Present  employment 


Office 

Office 

Machinist's  helper 

Lineman's  helper 

Telephone  office 

Telephone  office 

Chauffeur 

Stenographer 

Messenger 

Order  filler 

Messenger 

Messenger 

Errands 

Wrapper 

Order  picker 

Tube  boy 

Packer 

Messenger 

Office  boy 

Tube  boy 

Order  picker 

Telegraph  operator 

Office 

Messenger 

Messenger 

Messenger 

Messenger 

Re-checker 

Errands 


310 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


8th  Grade  Boys  Out  of  School 

Continued. 


Desired  employment 

Business 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade. 

Musician 

Machinist 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Patternmaker 

Patternmaker 

Steamfitter 

Steamfitter 

Wrought  shop 

Real  estate 

Electrical  engineer 

Lineman 

Lineman 

Bank 

Bookkeeper 

Letter  carrier 

Plumber 

Plumber 

Plumber 

Draughtsman 

Law 

Office,  business 

Correspondence,  M.  O.  house. 

Pharmacist 

Lathing  Contractor  (F.  A.  T.) 

Carpenter 

Bookbinder  (T.  T.) 

Commercial  school 

Dissatisfied 

Dissatisfied 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 


Age 

Present  employment 

16 

Errands 

17 

Machine  shop 

16 

Machine  shop 

17 

Machine  shop 

14 

Office 

16 

Telephone  office 

16 

Lineman's  helper 

15 

Messenger 

18 

Order  filler 

17 

Order  filler 

16 

Order  filler 

16 

Order  filler 

16 

Wrapper 

16 

Errands 

15 

Errands 

17 

Order  picker 

19 

Machine  shop 

17 

Office 

16 

Lineman's  helper 

18 

Telephone  office 

18 

Machine  shop 

16 

Lineman's  helper 

15 

Messenger 

16 

Messenger 

17 

Messenger 

17 

Machine  shop 

17 

Machine  shop 

16 

Machine  shop 

18 

Telephone  office 

18 

Machine  shop 

18 

Office 

16 

Lineman's  helper 

18 

Telephone  office 

18 

Machine  shop 

15 

Telephone  office 

16 

Telephone  office 

18 

Office 

16 

Telephone  office 

15 

Messenger 

16 

Office 

16 

Lineman's  helper 

16 

Carrier 

15 

Messenger 

15 

Messenger 

17 

Packer 

16 

Errands 

17 

Supply  clerk 

16 

Messenger 

18 

Order  clerk 

17 

Errands 

17 

Delivery  boy 

19 

Machine  shop 

16 

Office  boy 

PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 
7th  Grade  Boys  Out  of  School 


311 


Desired  employment 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Dissatisfied 

Dissatisfied 

Business 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade. 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Electrician 

Lineman 

Lineman 

Printer 

Draughtsman 

Draughtsman , 

Bookkeeper 


Age 


18 
17 
16 
15 
17 
16 
16 
17 
19 
16 
17 
16 
16 
19 
17 
18 
16 
17 
15 
16 
17 
16 
17 
18 
17 
16 
19 
17 
19 
18 
18 
18 
16 
17 
16 


Present  employment 


Office 

Machine  apprentice 

Machine  shop 

Telegraph  office 

Electrician's  helper 

Lineman's  helper 

Lineman's  helper 

Lineman's  helper 

Lineman's  helper 

Office 

Order  picker 

Engraver 

Order  filler 

Packer 

Messenger 

Machine  shop 

Messenger 

Machine  shop 

Office 

Telephone  office 

Machine  shop 

Machine  shop 

Carrier 

Order  filler 

Order  filler 

Office 

Machine  shop 

Order  picker 

Machine  shop 

Office 

Telephone  material  clerk 

Machine  shop 

Office 

Machine  shop 

Office 


6th  Grade  Boys  Out  of  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Satisfied 

Business 

Business 

Trade 

Office 

Electrician 

Civil  engineer 

Printer 

16 
16 
17 
15 
17 
16 
18 
17 
15 
20 
19 
17 
16 

Office 
Errands 
Order  filler 
Office  boy 
Packer 
Errands 
Wrapper 
Order  filler 
Messenger 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Wrapper 
Order  filler 

312 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


5th  Grade  Boys  Out  of  School 


Desired  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Undetermined 

Trade 

Trade 

Trade 

Machinist 

Butcher 

Butcher 

17 

18 
18 
16 
17 
17 
18 
20 
16 
20 
17 
17 
16 
17 
17 
18 

Foundry 
Carrier 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 
Machine  shop 

Table  XIV. —  8th  Grade  Night  School 


Present  employment 

Machinist 

Office  boy 

Bricklayer's  apprentice . 
Designer's  apprentice .  . 

Clerk 

Carpenter 

Usher 

Order  clerk 

Teaming 

Carpenter's  apprentice . 
Filling  telephone  boxes. 
Painter  and  decorator. . 


Age 


20 
15 
19 

19 
19 
19 
17 
16 
21 
20 
19 


Present  employment 

Machine  shop 

Office  clerk 

Errand  boy 

Carpenter's  apprentice 

Carpenter 

Carpenter 

Errand  boy 

Office  clerk 

Machinist's  apprentice 

Making  telephone  condensers 

Baggage  checker 

Packer  (provisions) 


Age 


16 
18 
15 
19 
19 
18 
17 
16 
19 
18 
18 
16 


PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 


313 


7th  Grade  Night  School 


Present  employment 


Office  boy 

Painter's  helper 

Office  boy 

Piece  work 

Office  boy 

Machinist 

Truck  handler 

Photographer's  helper. 

Cutter-tailor 

Printer 

Office  boy 

Tagging 

Varnisher 

Office  boy 

Mail  clerk,  assistant .  . 

Bill  distributor 

Printer 

Bill  distributor 

Office  boy 

Office  boy 

Office  boy 

Packer 

Office  boy 

Errand 


Age 


15 
15 
15 
17 
17 
23 
24 
15 


18 
15 
18 


15 
17 
18 
15 

16 

16 
16 
16 
16 
17 


Present  employment 


Machine  shop 

Machine  shop 

Elevator  operator .  .  . 

Delivery  boy 

Machinist 

Lumber  tallier 

Lather 

Office  boy 

Office  boy 

Office  boy 

Baker 

Stock  boy 

Blacksmith's  helper. . 

Janitor 

Office  boy 

Tailor's  apprentice .  . 

Office  boy 

Wood  worker 

Helper,  awning  shop. 

Order  filler 

Office  boy 

Errand 

Office  boy 


Age 


18 
16 
23 
20 


24 
21 
15 


16 
19 
16 
16 
17 
15 
14 
15 
21 
19 
16 
15 
16 
15 


6th  Grade  Night  School 


Present  employment 

Age 

Present  employment 

Age 

Errand 

Elevator  operator 

18 

Tailor  shop     .... 

Machine  oiler 

22 

Order  clerk 

20 
18 
20 
15 
20 
20 
17 
19 
20 
17 

20 
17 

Tailor 

20 

Bricklayer 

Electric  light  trimmer. . 

Candymaker 

24 

Errands 

17 

Stairbuilder 

23 

Carpenter 

18 

Bricklayer's  apprentice 

Jewelry  packer .  . 

Errand 

18 

Office  boy 

15 

Candymaker 

Machine  shop 

19 

Machine  shop . . 

Drug  store 

18 

Shipping  clerk 

Bricklayer's  apprentice 

Tailor's  shop 

17 

Clerk,  dry  goods 

16 

Clerk 

314 


REPORT  ON  VOCATIONAL  TRAINING 


Table  XV. —  6th  Grade  Night  School 


Present  employment 

Age 

Future 

Failed  to  reveal 

18 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

17 

Failed  to  reveal 

Failed  to  reveal 

14 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Failed  to  reveal 

18 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

14 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

7th  Grade  Night  School 


Failed  to  reveal 

20 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

18 

Undetermined 

Failed  to  reveal 

Undetermined 

8th  Grade  Night  School 


Failed  to  reveal . 


20         Undetermined 


PRESENT  AND  DESIRED  OCCUPATIONS 


315 


Table  XVI. —  Desired  Employment 


Satisfied 

Dissatisfied 

Undetermined , 

Trade. 

Electrician 

Plumber 

Office 

Telegraph  operator. 

Business 

Machinist 

Carpenter 

Printer 

Draughtsman 

Letter  carrier 

Civil  engineer 

Piano  tuner 

Farmer 

Railroad  engineer .  . 

Architect 

Navy 

Tinsmith 

Stenographer 

Traveling  salesman. 

Clerk 

Street-car  conductor 
Theater  decorator.  . 

Boatbuilder 

Engraver 


No. 


117 

19 

26 

35 

16 

4 

7 

3 

14 

10 

3 

4 

6 

4 

2 

1 

3 

2 

3 

1 

1 

2 

2 

2 

1 

1 

1 

1 


No. 


Electrical  engineer 

Typewriter  repairer 

Bank 

Insurance 

Bookkeeper 

Special  delivery  P.  O 

Pharmacist 

Railroad  office 

Chemist 

Automobile  machinist 

Government  office 

Railroad  mail  clerk 

Grain  buyer 

Chauffeur 

Butcher 

Lineman 

Mechanical  engineer 

Lawyer 

Musician 

Patternmaker 

Steamfitter 

Real  estate  agent 

Layerout  in  wrought  shop . .  . 
Correspondence,  M.  O.  house 

Lathing  contractor 

Bookbinder 

Commercial  school 

Structural  engineer 


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